Against Despair
by d3alora
Summary: A crossover story about Team HRRN, comprised of Hyde Kido (Under Night: In-Birth), Ruby Rose (RWBY), Ragna the Bloodedge (Blazblue), and led by Yu Narukami (Persona 4). As the four do their best to become capable Huntsmen at Beacon Academy, a dark presence awaits them, ushering in an age of ruin for Remnant. Will Team HRRN manage to rise Against Despair, or be overcome by tragedy?
1. Introduction - Ruby Rose

Gripping her scythe, Crescent Rose, the young huntress struggled to keep her composure as blood dripped from her beaten and cut body. Around her lay rubble and once-intact pillars and furniture, now broken and aflame. Screams, gunshots, and the clashing of swords could be heard in the distance. Much has grown dark in the cold night, save for the fires and dim light of the shattered moon. Staring back at the figure of the man cloaked in a yellow hooded coat, she saw not only malice, but great joy as he looked upon the pain and misfortune he'd wrought upon the teen. His yellow eyes and twisted grin grew more intense as tears began to flow down the eyes of the one foolish enough to challenge him.

"That look in those silver eyes of yours," the man spoke, letting out a brief chuckle. "It's one of fear, sorrow, and regret… How positively _delicious_." His eyes narrowed as a snake-like chain, clad in black and green, coiled it's way around his prey. The girl winced in pain, caught off guard by the quick tightening of the man's weapon. She looked back at him, defiance in her eyes. "It doesn't matter what you do to me," she said, "The Atlas military will be here any second, and my friends are going to stop you, no matter what!"

The man laughed hysterically in response, mocking what little the girl could provide to threaten him. "Bahahahahaha! Are you fucking with me right now?!" His speech was broken up by another fit of laughter. Barely able to retain any composure, he looked at her while his grin widened ever more. "Did you really think those morons in the airships haven't already been dealt with? As for your friends, I'd seriously doubt they'd have their hands free to do as they wish right now."

Twirling a switchblade in-between his fingers, the man approached her, before resting the blade by her neck. "Y'know, Cinder and her merry band of assclown's really managed to pull the rug out from under your Academy's feet. With the Grimm and White Fang laying waste to this shithole, I'd be surprised if any of your friends and teachers were even alive to begin with!" He began to laugh once again, though his grip on the blade remained as steady as before.

The girl, through all her pain, looked back at the man who had her life in his hands. With what bravery she could muster, she grit her teeth and asked "Just what do plan to do now?! What is even the point of all this? What do you _want_ from us?!"

All of the man's laughter came to an abrupt end, as his expression hardened into a scowl. "What I want, Miss Rose, is-"

Ruby shot straight up out of bed, her heart beating at an intense rate. A cold sweat poured down her chest, dampening her black pajama blouse. The moonlight reflected off her black hair, as the dark strands met the reddened ends. She sighed, realizing that the events she witnessed were just a dream.

Being the only girl on her team, Ruby Rose was given a divider between her portion of the room and the rest of the boys, which locked on her side to ensure privacy. _Not that any of them seem the type to intentionally try and peep on me._ Leaning over towards a small desk, Ruby opened up her scroll to check the time.

 _Wow, it's only 4:30? Not like I'll be able to get back to sleep at this point._ Making her way out of bed, the huntress-in-training changed into the black and red attire she was known best for, noting that she wouldn't need to be in her class uniform on a Sunday anyhow. As she finished dressing, Ruby unlocked the divider and did her best to tiptoe past her fast-asleep teammates, before making her way to Beacon Academy's long, massive halls.

It had been a few weeks since Ruby had been assigned her new team. At first, she was disappointed to be in a different team than her sister, Yang. Despite this, things had actually been settling quite well for the her. Although she had some difficulty in the classes, her team leader, Yu Narukami, had been a significant aid in helping her study. The other two, Hyde and Ragna, seemed too caught up in their own business to concern themselves with good study habits.

Being the youngest of Team HRRN (which Professor Ozpin pronounced as "Heron"), Ruby was accepted into Beacon after preventing the robbery of a Dust shop in a central town in Vale. With her scythe-rifle hybrid, "Crescent Rose", and the incredible power of her speed Semblance, she managed to prove herself more than capable among her teammates. Plus, her optimistic personality and bubbly demeanor brought plenty of energy to the group.

Yu, on the other hand, was hand selected to transfer from his high school after it was discovered that his Semblance allowed him to summon a "Persona". These beings, believed to be a physical manifestation of the human ego, wield weapons and powers of their own, acting on behalf of their user when called upon. Having received high marks during the initiation ceremony, as well as a natural aptitude for leadership, his role in Team HRRN was clear from the very start. Although his simple appearance and calm demeanor gave off an unassuming impression, people who knew him personally claimed that he had a bit of a quirky side. Ruby thought she saw a glimpse of this once when she saw him doing random poses in front of a mirror, claiming that he was "comfortable enough with his sexuality to become a professional dancer".

Ruby was unsure whether it'd be a good idea to ask what exactly he meant by that.

The other two members were rather similar to one another. _But not in a good way_ , Ruby thought to herself as she approached the school's library, which was fortunately open at all hours. As Ruby made her way to a section dedicated to comics and graphic novels, she thought of Hyde and Ragna, who had left quite an impression among the students and faculty of Beacon Academy.

Hyde Kido seemed fairly level-headed at first, but proved himself to be quite headstrong when getting into an argument with some of the more stuck-up students at Beacon. This, coupled with his improperly worn uniform and partially bleached hair, often gave the impression of a troublemaker to those that didn't know him. That being said, Hyde had demonstrated an inherent desire to protect others, after defending a faunus from a group of bullies at his previous school. His Semblance allowed him to manifest a portion of his Aura into a red blade which he had named "The Insulator". From this weapon, he'd been known to fire off powerful blasts of Aura energy, and cutting through just about any object, supposedly destroying anything it comes into contact with. This incredible antimatter effect proved an excellent weapon against the Grimm, but somewhat dangerous around people. The one saving grace of the Insulator was that an individual's Aura could protect them from its harmful effect, so long as said Aura held.

The final member, and by far the most hot-headed, was Ragna. Having grown up an orphan, Ragna had no family name, and had minimal contact with his younger siblings after they were adopted. He'd spent most of his early teens training to become a freelance bounty hunter, but he'd supposedly been persuaded to apply to Beacon by "his old master". When Ruby tried to ask him who said master was, the response was simply "none of your damn business."

Having white hair, heterochromia, and often dressed in baggy black trousers with a large red overcoat, Ragna's very appearance was more than enough to stand out in a crowd. This, however, was nothing compared to his attitude. From getting in arguments with the professors to starting fights with other students, Ragna was undoubtedly the problem child of their team, and it took Narukami a good week to finally get him to start behaving himself, even if somewhat begrudgingly. These aspects of his character aside, Ruby knew full well that Ragna was the strongest member of their Team _by a landslide_.

Ragna wielded a hybrid weapon he named "Blood Scythe", Ragna could use both a broadsword form and scythe form to cut down any foe, be it Grimm or otherwise. However, his real power came from his Semblance, "Soul Eater". Like Hyde, he could manifest his Aura as a powerful energy, launching it as a projectile or causing it to radiate from his weapon. What made this so devastating against human and faunus opponents was its ability to drain the Aura of his opponent, giving a portion of it to him. This often meant that fights against Ragna would easily turn in his favor if dragged out for too long. All this, combined with his martial arts training, made him by far the strongest out of their team.

After finally being seated with a comic, Ruby relaxed and did her best to get absorbed into the story. Despite this, she couldn't help but think back to the man in her dream. His yellow eyes and malevolent expression still remained fresh in her memory. _What could make me dream of someone so horrible_ , she thought, just as a figure approached her.

Looking up towards the man who stood beside the table, she saw the Headmaster of Beacon Academy, Professor Ozpin. He held a stack of papers in one hand, and a freshly brewed cup of coffee in the other. "A bit early for comic books, wouldn't you say, Miss Rose?"

Ruby giggled briefly before closing the book. "You're probably right about that, Professor." She awkwardly scratched at the back of her neck before deciding to be up front. "It's just, I had a pretty bad nightmare, and I figured I wouldn't be getting back to sleep anytime soon."

Nodding in response, Ozpin sat down across from Ruby. "I wish my excuse for being up were nearly as innocent," he said, motioning to the stack of unfinished paperwork in his hand. "If I may inquire, would you be willing to tell me about this dream of yours?"

"Uhh…" Ruby cocked her head to the side, confused as to why Ozpin had asked her this. "Well, the school was being attacked by Grimm, and there was this strange man who had hurt me." She cringed as she remembered how real the pain had felt. "I think he was trying to kill me."

"So, what did this mystery man look like?" Ozpin took a sip of his coffee as he questioned the young student.

"His clothes were mostly black, aside from a yellow coat. His eyes were yellow, and he had a scary smile on his face, like he was enjoying hurting me…"

Ozpin sat back as he heard this, a growing look of concern on his face. "Was there anything else unique about this man? Perhaps, the color of his hair?"

"I couldn't really see his hair beneath the hood…" Ruby looked back up to the Headmaster. "Why? Do you know somebody like that?"

The Headmaster chuckled as he got back up from his seat. "Oh, not all! I merely thought I'd seen somebody like that on the Vale News Network." He gathered his papers as the Professor took one last sip of his remaining coffee. "Now, I believe it's time for me to get a refill and finish up my work. Have a lovely day Miss Rose, and do try to get some extra rest before classes on Monday."

"I will, Professor, don't worry!"

Ruby waved to Ozpin as he left, and though he saw a reassuring smile on her face, he couldn't help but think of the man that his student had described. _Yellow eyes and coat… black attire… a twisted smile reflecting cruelty, and malice…_ Ozpin thought back to someone he'd known long ago, in a different life. The name came to him as he remembered the man who'd betrayed his own comrades long ago. The headmaster muttered the name under his breath.

"Yuuki Terumi…"


	2. Introduction - Hyde Kido

"I'm telling you guys, motion sickness is _way_ more common than you guys think! So I threw up on an airship _one time_ , that doesn't mean my name has to be 'Vomit Boy' for the rest of the year!"

Hyde Kido couldn't help but laugh at his friends' plight. They'd only been at Beacon Academy for a couple weeks, yet Jaune Arc had already managed to make himself notoriously well-known as rumors of his mid-flight accident spread around the school. Even as they walked through the hallways to get lunch, various students could be heard laughing and gossipping as they passed by.

"Hey man, the more you complain about it, the worse it'll get!" Hyde did his best to try and comfort Jaune, though he couldn't help but throw in an added tease. "Besides, you wouldn't want to put too much stress on that stomach of yours, right?"

"Oh _haha_ , REAL CLEVER, Hyde!" Jaune had undoubtedly gotten sick of being the butt of everyone's jokes, and the recent attention from the school's resident bully didn't leave him in any better of a position.

Taking up the rear of the three blonde-haired students, Kanji Tatsumi groaned in response to Hyde and Jaune's conversation. "Can you two morons cool it with the puke talk? It's actually starting to get old, guys." The look on his face was one of exhaustion as he continued. "Seriously, I thought we were on our way to _get_ food, not to _lose_ it."

Jaune used this as an opportunity to change the subject. "Actually, I managed to find someone willing to tutor us, so I figured we might wanna meet up with them since they offered to help."

"About damn time," Kanji said, as a small yawn escaped his mouth. "Friggen' Oobleck goes through his lessons WAY too fast! My teammates keep getting on my case 'cause of him…"

As they entered the cafeteria, Hyde questioned Jaune. "Not that I'm worried about classes, but who'd you manage to score as a tutor?"

Holding two fingers up, Jaune flashed a wide grin. "There are two _beautiful_ young ladies awaiting our arrival." In spite of Kanji's roll-of-the-eyes in response to Jaune's corny statement, the natural blonde remained excited as two redheads approached them, study materials in hand.

Hyde recognised one of them as the prodigious Pyrrha Nikos, whose reputation preceded her as one of the most skilled fighters to make her way into Beacon Academy. Although her kind nature and empathetic attitude made her fairly approachable, it did nothing to betray her history as an unparalleled duelist. "It's great to see you again, Jaune!" She waved to him before addressing the other boys. "Hyde and Kanji, I've heard that you two may be joining us as well?" Hyde shrugged his shoulder, disinterested in the whole idea of tutorship. Kanji seemed much more eager in comparison. "Man, if Makoto finds out my grades have sunk any lower, she'll send my ass straight through our dorms' roof. I only got into this school 'cause of my Persona, so you girls are a godsend."

Taking a look at the other girl, it turned out to be someone Hyde hadn't met before; her baggy, tan outfit had an oddly militaristic look to it, with the cap having what appeared to be wings on each side, a single image of an eyeball in the middle. "My name is Tsubaki Yayoi," she seemed to speak in a fairly proper tone compared to the lackadaisical tone of the boys. "I realize it's our lunch break, so I'm willing to wait until we've all eaten to begin the tutoring."

Dismissing the offer, Hyde headed toward the lunch line. "My grades are fine, there's no need for me to waste my time in a study group."

Phyrra stopped him as she spoke up. "I'm not so sure if straight C's are what I'd call 'fine' grades, Hyde. I feel it's my duty as your classmate to request that you reconsider." Tsubaki nodded, adding that "this offer is made to help you, so it'd be a waste the squander it."

Crossing his arms, Hyde let out a sigh. "Is there anything else in it for me? I came to this school to become a Huntsman, not some Valedictorian nerd."

Considering her options, Phyrra came up with an idea. "How about a duel between You, Kanji, Tsubaki, and I? If we win, you stick with us through the tutoring."

"What if _we_ win? If I'm to go against the famous Pyrrha Nikos, there ought to be something good as a prize."

"I could go to tomorrow's classes wearing whatever you ask of me," she boldly offered.

"What do you take me for, some kinda perv?"

"Hmm… How about instead, we'll do all your classwork for the next month? Although in this case, if you two lose, Kanji has to wear a dress to his morning classes."

"YOU'VE GOT YOURSELF A DEAL!" Hyde instantly snapped his arm up to shake Pyrrha's hand.

Dumbfounded, it took Kanji a moment to realize what had just occurred. "W-w-w-wait a minute! What the hell? That's not how a bet works-." But he was too late, as the two betters shook hands before he could finish. As Tsubaki chuckled in the background, Jaune laughed uncontrollably as he grasped his sides.

"What's so damn funny, huh?!" Kanji yelled at Jaune.

"Ahahahaha! Oh, I'd hate to be you right now! I wouldn't get caught _dead_ in a dress!"

Kanji immediately turned back to Hyde, a mixture of anger and panic in his eyes. "You better not even _think_ of losing this match for us, or else you're gonna be friggen' DEAD! Ya hear me, punk?!"

Shrugging his shoulders, Hyde gave a devilish smile. "Well I ain't the type to throw a match y'know. Trust me, _we've got this_."

"I can't believe I agreed to this crap," Kanji said to himself as he and Hyde made their way to the training room. Professor Glynda Goodwitch had agreed to oversee the duel, considering the request came from Pyrrha Nikos. However, having a teacher there to oversee the results didn't exactly leave Kanji with a feeling of confidence. "Seriously dude, do you at least have any sort of plan? Those two ain't exactly pushovers, y'know."

"Nah, not really," Hyde stated. "I usually just make things up as I go along. My body does most of the work for me." However, he did wonder if their opponents knew much about their Semblances. Everyone knew Kanji was a Persona-user. _But is that all they know about? Well, no use stressing out over it, I guess._

"That's not exactly encouraging to hear, dude." Kanji let out a sigh as he slung a large steel folding chair over his shoulder. "Whatever, let's just get this over with…"

Meeting them in the middle of the arena were Tsubaki and Pyrrha, both dressed in their iconic battle garb. _Maybe I should've worn something other than my uniform_ , Hyde thought to himself. Still, he at least looked somewhat professional compared to Kanji, who seemed perfectly content with black slacks and a purple t-shirt.

Glynda Goodwitch eyed the two pairs for a brief moment, noting the vastly different appearance of the boys from the girls. "The rules remain the same as a standard one-versus-one match. If you're Aura drops into the red, or you're otherwise knocked off of the arena borders, then you're out. The team with at least one contestant remaining is the victor." She then pressed a button on her scroll, causing the platform that the students were on to begin to rise, until it was at least ten feet off the ground.

The Professor waited a brief moment before finishing. "The match commences… now!"

Before anyone could so much as put up their guard, Kanji launched into the air, aiming to slam down on both Pyrrha and Tsubaki. Nimbly dodging the impact, Tsubaki extended the length of her blade to strike at Kanji, who barely managed to block the strike with his chair. Hyde attempted to follow up on the brief opening Tsubaki had left, but ended up going on the defensive as Pyrrha laid down suppressive fire with her rifle.

"Oh, c'mon!" Kanji taunted. "You ain't a buncha cowards, are ya?! Fight us like men, damn it!"

"Certainly," Phyrra replied, as her rifle shifted to a spear-like shape. "Tsubaki, I'll leave Hyde to you."

"Understood." Tsubaki turned her attention to Hyde, as her Aura began to radiate, implying some sort of charging process. Hyde recognised to this, seeing an opportunity to go back on the offensive. "Orbiter!" As he yelled out the name, a sphere of Aura energy fired from Insulator. Anticipating this, Tsubaki deflected the shot with her shield, then charged forward, her blade glowing in a brilliant light. Hyde met her attack with his own, although the resulting clash of Aura energies caused both fighters to be knocked back. Struggling to stay on his feet, Hyde noticed that Tsubaki had taken the blast with surprising grace, seemingly unphased. "Looks like you aren't gonna go down easily," he commented, recognizing her clear experience in battle. "Looks like my Insulator won't be able to get through your weapons Aura field so easily."

Tsubaki smiled, calmly looking over her opponent. "If that alone was your trump card, I'm afraid you're sadly underqualified for this match."

Hyde chuckled in response. "Trust me, this fight is _far_ from over!"

Meanwhile, Kanji was doing his best to strike against Pyrrha, but all of his attacks were smoothly dodged and countered, ending with his opponent vaulting over him, and landing a swift kick to his ribcage. Even through his massive wall of Aura, Kanji could feel the impact of the kick as he fell down to his knees. To prevent himself from taking further damage from a follow-up attack, Kanji pointed his hand toward Pyrrha. "Zio!" From his hands flashed a large spark of electricity. Although the student tried to block the majority of the electric shock, it still sent her back a short distance, and took a bite out of her Aura reserves.

Maintaining her guard, Phyrra called out to Kanji. "That was a great counter, Kanji! However, you need to put more precision into your strikes. As it is, you're swinging far to wide!"

As he got back on to his feet, Kanji tried to relax his stiff muscles. "Guess I need more trainin' after all. Still, you chicks didn't exactly put me in a position to back down, so it looks like I'll have kick things up a notch!" Pointing the folding chair into the air, Kanji summoned his Persona. "It's time to kick some ass, Take-Mikazuchi!"

Towering above the arena, the massive, metallic Persona held a blade shaped like a bolt of lightning. It's black body was decorated by what appeared to be images of bones, or some sort of skeletal structure.

Noticing that Kanji had started to get serious, Pyrrha readied her shield and spear to prepare for his attack. Take-Mikazuchi flew towards her alarmingly fast, swinging the massive weapon as it made its charge. Barely managing to backflip over the slash, Pyrrha decided to fire point blank at the Persona's head, sending it reeling back.

"Ow! Dude, what the hell was that?!" The look on Kanji's face was one of pure confusion as to why he suddenly took significant Aura damage, putting him in the red.

"Mr. Tatsumi!" Glynda yelled to her student from the audience bleachers. "You're Persona is an extension of your own Aura! Any attacks against it translate to the users' own Aura reserves! I TAUGHT YOU THIS IN CLASS!"

"Oh crap, I completely forgot about that.." After dismissing Take-Mikazuchi, Kanji reluctantly climbed down the arena ladder in response to being beaten. "C'mon Hyde, you better win this one for me! I ain't goin' down in history as some crossdressing creep!"

With the match suddenly a two-on-one, Hyde realized he'd seriously bit off more than he could chew. "I don't suppose you girls have it in your hearts to throw this match for me?"

"Quite the contrary," Tsubaki responded, her eyes betraying a satisfied look. "I intend to finish this in a single blow." Charging forward with Pyrrha not far behind, Tsubaki left Hyde with only a single option left, as he stabbed Insulator into the floor of the arena.

"GYRE VORTEX!"

A massive burst of dark energy caught Tsubaki off guard, launching her clear off the arena. What little remained of her Aura cushioned the fall, as Kanji ran over check on her. "Damn, are you gonna be alright?!"

"I'll be fine, Kanji." She managed to say, though clearly still shaken by what just occurred. "I'll be back on my feet in a moment." Although she did feel ashamed of having fallen prey to her own overconfidence, she had to admit, "That guy certainly was resourceful…"

As Jaune ran over from the bleachers to help Kanji get Tsubaki back on her feet, Hyde took a look at his own Aura reserves. _Dangerously close to red_ , he thought, as he turned to face Phyrra, who managed to avoid the massive blast. His attack had left a small crater underneath his position, and the girl was covered in rubble, though she still retained just under half of her maximum Aura.

"Think carefully as to your next move," Pyrrha advised to Hyde, "Your actions here will determine not only the outcome of this match, but the fate of a dear friend. It's through duels like this one that we prepare ourselves for the life that awaits all huntresses and huntsmen."

"Don't you go lecturing me, Nikos." Hyde showed no patience for Phyrra advice, the adrenaline getting to his head. "You better be ready to finish this!"

"Gladly… Polarity Shift." Her hand emitted a dark Aura as a large piece of the rubble from her opponents' attack launched back toward Hyde. Cutting through the attack with Insulator, Hyde went on the offensive, dashing towards Pyrrha. "Hah! I've got you, now!" But, just as his attack was about to connect, his target flipped over him, grabbing the teen by his collar. Just as Hyde realized his mistake, he felt himself get slammed straight into the floor, as the sound of a buzzer went off.

"Victory goes to Pyrrha Nikos and Tsubaki Yayoi!" Goodwitch's voice could be heard clearly as the arena platform descended back to ground level.

Offering her hand to Hyde, Pyrrha had one last thing to say to her beaten opponent. "Now then, shall we hit the books, Mr. Kido?"

Hyde groaned, before accepting her hand. "Sure, I guess you got me."

In the distance, Kanji could be heard screaming. "I NEVER SHOULD'VE AGREED TO THIS CRAP!"

...

As Hyde and Jaune took their seats in Professor Ports classroom, they could barely contain their laughter as they waited for Kanji's "big reveal".

"Oh man, I kinda feel bad for him!" Jaune said, though still tempted to laugh. "There's no way that he'll live to see the end of this!" Although he knew it was mean to mock Kanji, Jaune couldn't wait to get people to focus on something other than "Vomit Boy".

As Hyde looked over his shoulder, his snickering immediately ceased, and his jaw dropped. There were no words for what he was witnessing at that moment. Although Kanji was entering the classroom, he wasn't the one wearing a dress.

"Hey pricks!" Kanji called out to his friends, gaining the attention of the whole class. "Guess who offered to take my punishment for me!"

All eyes had turned to Yu Narukami, who had on a black silk dress, decked out with matching high heels, a wig to match his grey hair, and dark mascara around his eyes. As the leader of Team HRRN pressed his finger up to his lips, he had but a single question for the class: "So what do you think? Do I look hot, or do I look _**HOT**_?"


	3. Introduction - Ragna the Bloodedge

"You've been attending this Academy for a little over a month, now." Beacon's Headmaster, Ozpin, stated to the white-haired student that sat across from him, the boys arms crossed in silent defiance. "Tell me Ragna, why is it that in such a short time, you've managed to make your way into my office a third time already?"

Ragna brushed aside the Headmasters' frustrated expression. "If the punks at this school wanna take a shot at me, I'll give them the fight they're asking for. I don't back down when challenged, Professor. Not for _anyone_ , not even you."

Glynda Goodwitch shot Ragna an infuriated expression. "I'd strongly suggest you watch your tongue, young man! That is Beacon's _Headmaster_ , you'd best show him the respect he deserves, or so help me I'll-"

"That'll be enough, Glynda." Ozpin stopped her before she could finish. "Please, feel free to return to your lectures. I'll take care of Ragna, so there's no need for you to strain yourself today."

"...As you wish, Professor. Please inform me if you need further assistance."

As Goodwitch took her leave, Ozpin returned to addressing the rebellious student. "I spoke over scroll with your previous guardian. It must be quite an honor to have trained under the One-Eyed Lotus, himself. Clearly you've learned much in the ways of battle and various survival skills. However, there's one important lesson that didn't seem to stick."

Knowing exactly what was coming, Ragna rolled his eyes. "'The Art of Discipline', right? Master Jubei always gets on my case about that one, but it's just…" He trailed off, struggling to find the right words.

"What is it, Ragna?"

"...When I see people who pick on others just for being weaker, or for being different, I just get so _pissed off_. There're a bunch of pricks here like that. Worst of them are those that bully faunus' just for being born a certain way. It seriously rubs me the wrong way."

Ozpin nodded in understanding. "It is all too tempting to give in to one's emotions, especially against those who get on our nerves. Anger gives us a sensation of power, not just in the rush of adrenaline, but as rage build, it can awaken our most primal, base instincts." The Professor then decided to change the subject. "May I ask you a bit of an odd question?"

"Shoot," Ragna said, with a touch of curiosity in his voice.

"Have you heard the story of the Four Maidens?"

"That goofy fairy tale about the power of the seasons being gifted to four girls by some old geezer?" Ragna snickered in response. "I mean, I do know it, ya. Master always insisted that the story's true, though I figured he was just filling me with hot air."

The Headmaster chuckled in response. "Well, you'll come to find that many fairy tales have some form of truth hidden within them. But as for the Maidens, not only is there believed to be truth to their story, but once upon a time, the story was much longer before being shortened in our modern era."

"So what does this have to do with me?" Ragna raised his eyebrow, unsure of what the Headmaster was getting at.

"Well Ragna, it was once written that one of the Maidens was burdened with a child. A child who was unlike any other. Stronger, smarter, and overall much more talented than his peers. Beyond all this, however, he possessed within him an overabundance of rage. This boy sought out any and all opportunities to vent his anger, and as he grew to become a young man, tantrums and schoolyard tussles became acts of unspeakable cruelty and violence. Arson and torture grew into homicide and acts of terrorism. As the man's mind twisted and mutated, so too did his body, writhing and coiling until it became something unrecognisable to human and faunus alike."

"No wonder that part got removed," Ragna mentioned. "There's no way this was supposed to be a kids story! But wait… do you mean to say that all this really happened?"

Ozpin stood up to brew a fresh pot of coffee. "Well, regardless of if the story up until this point is true or not, the ending coincides with a real, documented event in Remnants' history. Whether or not this creature really was once human, or the descendant of a Maiden… it became known as the first Grimm to ever exist: The Black Beast."

Knowing this part of history well, Ragna recited an old verse his Master had taught him;

"Eyes of red, darker than the night sky

Upon the throne of the king, undone

Feral as a beast, the Dark One did feast

The days without the sun."

"I see you know the verses of the The Dark Days." Ozpin returned to his seat. "Then, I suppose you know well enough of how the Black Beast was vanquished by the Six Heroes of Remnant 100 years ago. You're well acquainted with one of them, after all."

Smiling, Ragna couldn't help but laugh. "Haha, my Master really is pretty amazing!"

"You give him such high regard," Ozpin said, sipping from his mug. "Why not take his lessons to heart? There's wisdom in discipline, and in controlling our primal emotions. The story I told of the Black Beast may seem like a great exaggeration, but I've seen anger make monsters of men like you and I, and I'd hate to see you become a man overwhelmed by your own emotions."

Ragna sighed, but nodded his head in agreement. "You've made your point, Professor. I'll try and improve my discipline… and my attitude."

"Don't just try, _do it_. You are much more capable than you believe. If I thought you didn't have it in you to improve, you wouldn't still be at this school." Ozpin motioned to the elevator. "Now then, be on your way, Ragna. You've still got your afternoon classes, and I've got matters of my own to attend to."

"Yes, Professor." The student got up and left, as Ozpin finally had the opportunity to catch up on unfinished paperwork.

Or so he thought.

"My, you certainly have a way with unruly children, Headmaster."

A figure appeared before him, seemingly out of thin air. Dressed in a long, flowing black and red dress, the small woman appeared to be adolescent, with her long blonde hair tied up into lengthy pigtails, and a red bow tied on to her collar.

"Miss Alucard," Ozpin recognised the visage of his vampiric ally, and friend of countless years. "I wasn't expecting a visit this afternoon. Shall I brew us a pot of tea?"

"As much as I'd love to accept your generous offer, I'm afraid I must make my time here short, as I've an appointment to keep." Rachel Alucard moved on to the topic at hand. "I've come bearing news from the good General Ironwood. It appears that work on the Anti-Grimm Defense Platforms has yielded a new line of prototype androids, meant to resemble young girls. I'd suppose this was done to give them an empathetic, 'human' feel. What's more, it seems that the Imperator herself approved the design."

Taking another drink from his mug, the Professor considered certain implications of Atlas' most recent military project. "This sounds dangerously close in design to the Murakumo Project. I'd hate to think that they've forgotten how much of that technology had fallen into enemy hands. Even now, the whereabouts of Number Thirteen remains unknown."

"An appropriate amount of skepticism, given the carelessness of Atlesian innovation." Rachel admitted, "One can only hope that history not repeat itself."

"Agreed." Ozpin finished his coffee much faster than usual. It seemed that the stress of his position was finally getting to him. "Will there be anything else, old friend?"

"I regret that this is all I have to provide today. With that said, I bid you adieu, Headmaster Ozpin, 'till next we meet"

"Adieu, Miss Alucard," Ozpin responded, "'Till next we meet."

Watching as the vampire disappeared, the Headmaster returned to his seat. "Androids as defensive platforms… I hope your leadership knows what they're doing, General."

….

After getting finished with his classes (and being forced to stay late to listen to Professors Ports overly extended monologue), Ragna made his way to the school's training room to meet up with his teammates. Since instructors were going to present that evening, Yu had decided that It'd be the perfect time to have a couple one-on-one sparring matches.

"Ragna, you're late!" Ruby Rose called out to her team member. "You missed it! I totally whooped Hyde's butt that round!"

Hyde tried to play it cool. "She got _lucky_ , I'll win the next one for sure."

Ragna smirked. "Damn Hyde, keep getting beaten by chicks, and people might start to think you're into that kinda stuff."

Hyde tensed up, crossing his arms. "...Shut up..."

Meeting Ragna in the middle of the arena, Yu Narukami drew his katana. Tossing the sheath aside, he greeted his opponent for the match. "You certainly kept me waiting… Ragna the Bloodedge. I was afraid you might not show at all."

Ragna smiled at the sound of the title Ruby came up for him. "About time people started calling me that!" Resting the tip of Blood Scythe on the floor, Ragna met Yu's greeting with his own. "Alright then, let's see what our 'Fearless Leader' is made of! Don't hold back on me, Narukami!"

Yu pressed his glasses up as he smirked. "Don't worry, I'm going all out! Come on… IZANAGI!"

Yu's Persona appeared, it's steel body clad in loose black garments, and wielding a large, spear-like weapon. Various hoot and hollers could be heard as the rooms' lights dimmed, and students from all over the school came to watch the match-up they'd been waiting for all day.

"You go, Ragna the Bloodedge! You've got this in the bag!" Ruby bounced up and down as she cheered on her teammate.

"Show him why they call you the 'Kingpin of Steel', Narukami!" Hyde stood up, rooting for his team leader.

The instructor present spoke into a microphone to hype up the students even further as the arena platform rose up into the air. "The match between Team HRRN's leader, Yu Narukami, and his tough-as-nails, powerhouse teammate, Ragna the Bloodedge commences… Now!"


	4. Introduction - Yu Narukami

"I am thou… and thou art I…"

Like all Persona users, these were the words that Yu had heard echo in his head when he'd first awakened to his Semblance. Although this fact alone was enough to allow him into Beacon Academy, it was his inherit knack for leadership that truly caught the attention of the Headmaster of Beacon.

"It's fascinating, wouldn't you say?" Ozpin asked his student. "Although it's commonly agreed upon as being a unique form of Semblance, every single Persona introduces itself with the same phrase."

Narukami, having been made the leader of Team HRRN fairly recently, nodded as they looked over at the evening sunset. Although Ozpin had been rather busy after the initiation ceremony, he'd still made a point to speak with individual team members when time would allow it.

"Even though I'd never heard it's voice before," Yu responded. "It was as if I'd known Izanagi my whole life. If that's how it is for every Persona user, I wouldn't be surprised."

The Headmaster smiled. "You mentioned before that you had friends with Persona's as well."

"Yes, my friends from Yasogami High have them, too."

"A shame that so few of them chose to attend."

Yu thought to the last year he had spent at Yasogami. His partner and best friend, Yosuke Hanamura, had been the first to back him up when the school came under attack from the Grimm. Although Yosuke wanted to become a Huntsman, his parents insisted on their son staying home so that he could take over the Junes Mall one day. The girls had all pursued different careers, with Chie Satonaka in the Vale Police Academy, Naoto Shirogane continuing her detective work, and Yukiko Amagi traveling oversea's to work at the family's Inn.

Only he and Kanji Tatsumi would decide to accept the invitation to Beacon.

"Mr. Narukami, did you know that you weren't my first choice for Team HRRN's leader?"

Although the Headmaster's question surprised him, Yu felt a sudden shift in Ozpin's demeanor. "No sir, I didn't. Why choose me if I'm not cut out for the position?"

Ozpin turned away from the direction of the sunset to face Yu, his expression darkened compared to his usually appearance. "You _are_ cut out for the position, much more than any of your team members. You are respected by and inspire those around you, and they follow instinctively. Although Ragna may be rebellious in nature, I can tell you that he has softened under your guidance, and would undoubtedly follow your orders when needed. Hyde has shown no qualms to this either."

"Is that why you chose me?" Yu found himself wondering who the first choice was.

"I believe that Ms. Rose has the means to one today reach her hidden potential as a leader, and under different circumstances, I would've picked her in a heartbeat. However, at such a young age, it'd be too difficult for her to earn the respect of three older teenage boys, especially someone as stubborn as Ragna." The Headmaster slowly returned the smile to his face. "Luckily, I have you as an alternative option. I need someone who not only has the talent and experience to develop unity among you four, but the inspirational qualities of a leader that will bring out the potential that lies in Ruby."

…..

Two blades clashed as the duel between Yu Narukami and Ragna the Bloodedge began. A flurry of stabs, slashes, and Aura bursts lit up the center of the arena before the two members of Team HRRN interlocked weapons.

"Not too bad, leader!" Ragna said, as he pushed the heavy weight of Blood Scythe's sword form against Yu's katana. "But you're gonna need to give me a little more than _that_ , if you wanna win!" Jumping back to gain some distance, Yu sent out his Persona. "Izanagi, strike true!" Charging straight for Ragna, Izanagi's blade met Ragna's own weapon, knocking him back with surprising force. Rolling to the side to avoid an electric blast, Ragna scraped his blade against the arena floor, generating an Aura projectile. "Dead Spike!"

Ragna's Dead Spike shot straight past Izanagi, aiming for Narukami. Channeling electricity through his blade, Yu forcefully cut through the projectile, though the mere presence of the volatile Aura seemed to chip away at Yu's own Aura.

Feeling a sliver of his opponents Aura transfer to him, Ragna decided to go back on the offensive. "Hell's Fang!" He charged forward, energy erupting from his right hand, but as he was about to land a punch against Yu, the Persona appeared again, blocking the hit. Izanagi followed up with an overhead swing, barely dodged in time by Ragna.

 _The distance that Izanagi gives me allows some small advantage,_ Narukami thought as he directed his Persona's swings. _But I can't overdo it. Using Izanagi and my Zio skills too often will start to wear out the Aura field protecting me from attacks, and I can't regenerate my own Aura fast enough to keep up with Ragna's Soul Eater. I'll have to get in close if I want to secure a lead, even if his skills in close quarters far exceed my own._

"INFERNO DIVIDER!" An Aura fueled uppercut launched Ragna and Izanagi into the air. Although his own Aura took an unnecessary hit, Yu saw the opening to strike as Ragna descended back down. Dismissing his Persona, Narukami lunged forward, stabbing straight into Ragna's gut, putting a large dent in his Aura pool. Although he'd been knocked down a peg, Ragna smiled as he guarded against a follow-up strike from his team leader. "Damn, didn't see that one coming! I guess Ozpin didn't put you in charge just for shits and giggles." Suddenly, Ragna spun around with his legs out, sweeping Yu off his feet.

Realizing that he'd let down his guard, Narukami braced for the imminent strike that sent him flying towards the edge of the arena. He could feel his Aura had dropped well below the halfway point, and the large electronic scoreboard above the arena showed that Yu had fallen into the "Yellow", hovering around 35%. _Falling below 20% will be an immediate loss, and Ragna is still above 65%. I may have no choice but to try and go for an out-of-bounds victory. But there's no way I could risk bringing out Izanagi to try and grab him when I'm already so low._ Narukami mustered what strength he left, charging up one last attack as Ragna the Bloodedge charged toward him. _Looks like I have no choice but to use my trump card._

"ZIODYNE!"

A flash of extraordinary blue light filled up the entire training area, as a massive wave of electric energy hit Ragna dead on, knocking him an incredible distance back. He was launched so far, that as the energy dispersed and arena returned to its dim light, all eyes in the bleachers could see that Ragna the Bloodedge had hit the edge of the protective Aura field that kept non-participants from being hit with stray projectiles. He remained suspended there for half a second, before dropping to the ground.

There was a brief moment of silence among the students, as they looked up at the screen.

Yu Narukami had 21% of his Aura remaining.

"THE WINNER, WITH A MASSIVE KNOCK-OUT FINISHER, IS YU NARUKAMI!"

In response to the teachers' verdict, the crowd's voices erupted into applause, cheers, hollers as they celebrated the victory of Team HRRN's leader over his opponent.

"Looks like you owe me twenty Lien," Hyde said to Ruby, a mug grin on his face.

Ruby, barely aware of Hyde, looked at Ragna, who'd just managed to get back on his feet. She sighed as she reached for her wallet. "Alright, Yu won fair and square. He was so close, though…"

As he limped over towards the medical staff nearby, Ragna gave a thumbs up towards Yu and smiled at his leader. _Ya, there's a reason he chose you, no doubt about it._

 ** _A/N_**

 ** _Howdy fella's! I apologize for having disappeared like that. I was starting to lose a lot of confidence in myself (anxiety sucks) and I had some personal issues to deal with. That said, this will be the final introduction prior to the story, and it's about time that I answer some guest questions._**

 ** _Great as the standard naming conventions are, I'm sticking with this inverted convention for Team HRRN. Although Narukami is the leader, his role is going to be that of a mentor for the other members, so I don't want to give off the impression that his story arc will be the focus of this fanfiction. Instead, think of him as the one "holding up" his teammates to help them reach their respective potential._**

 ** _In this story, Yuki Terumi has not yet met Ragna the Bloodedge. As a matter of fact, I'm going to be mixing up the hero-villain dynamic so that I can take advantage of the crossover nature of Against Despair. In other words, Ragna's hatred will be directed towards a certain RWBY antagonist, and I'm certain you all know who Ruby will encounter at some point in the story._**

 ** _Jin and Saya have both been adopted. I'm not at a point where I can say much else in regards to Ragna's siblings, sorry._**

 ** _The spelling of "Pyrrha" has been fixed in Hyde's intro. Thanks for bringing this to my attention._**

 ** _Ragna's Semblance is "Soul Eater", which will replace his Drive/Azure Grimoire from the Blazblue titles. Instead, the change in Ragna's appearance is directly a result of when he'd unlocked his Semblance._**

 ** _Ozpin was never OFFICIALLY documented as a member of the Six Heroes. However, he was known among them by a particular title in his last life, and played a role in helping defeat the Black Beast. Although he is still in contact with Jubei, he insists that they don't speak of his involvement to anyone else. While I don't wish to go too far into detail, I'll say that Yuki Terumi holds quite the grudge against Ozpin._**

 ** _Finally, I will address a request regarding Ragna's swearing: He will become exponentially more vulgar over the course of the story. Right now, he's still a student, and even though rebellious, I can't have him dropping f-bombs every other sentence. At least, not YET. Eventually, he'll be right up there with Black Lagoon's Revy._**

 ** _Thank you for your time! I'll see ya'll again in the next chapter!_**


	5. To Become A Team - Ruby Rose

"Cops, cops, and more bloody cops! Can't you do anything about this?!" As the wanted criminal, Roman Torchwick, angrily marked spots on his map of Central Vale, the man behind him shrugged. This individual, though well dressed in a blue business tux, had a noticeably apathetic look on his face. Coupled with a heavy slouch and loose tie, it was clear that the man had little care for Torchwick's worries.

"Why should I give a damn? This is _your_ problem, not mine." The man responded as he scratched at the back of his head. "Besides, it's not like I'm the Commissioner of the VPD. If I tried to get the force spread out, they'd know I'm a mole right away. You're gonna have to make do with the info I've got."

"Y'know Adachi, Cinder convinced me that working with you and these White Fang nutjobs would help our odds of success with this little operation. I can't say that they're my favorite group of bloodthirsty animals, but at least _they_ get results!" Roman clutched the cane weapon at his side, finger locked over it's unique firing mechanism. "I'm starting to wonder if you're just going to be another liability at this point."

Clutching the handgun holstered at his waist, Tohru Adachi grinned at the ginger haired criminal. "Oh, you think you're hot shit, now? Let me fill you in on a little secret: The only liability here is the whiny little bitch who can't learn to adjust to the situation when things don't go his way. You wanna call yourself a gangster? Then put on your big-boy diaper and start figuring shit out for yourself, _amatuer_!"

"What the HELL did you just call me?!" Gritting his teeth, Roman snapped his weapon upwards toward Adachi, who met him with his own firearm. Just as things were about to come to blows between the two, another voice erupted through the dimly lit building they were using as their base of operations.

"Enough, the both of you!" A dark haired woman, draped in a red dress, followed by an entourage of five others. She glared at the two henchman, who backed down as her red eyes stared them down. "I've gone to the trouble of gathering you all together, and I won't have you kill each other over petty disputes!" She motioned her arm to the large meeting table in the middle of the building, "Now, take your seats, everyone. We'll be going over the information we've acquired so far."

Although there were a couple groans among the group, each of them took a seat, with two seats being reserved for a particularly large man among the group.

Cinder Fall stood at the end of the table, looking out a nearby window at the shattered moon. "Although I'd prefer to move things forward with our plans, it seems as though it will take more time to procure the resources necessary to properly equip our allies in the White Fang. Roman, you and Neo will need to make another supply run. It'll be the location by the eastern waterfront."

Roman rolled his eyes. "I don't suppose you'll have anyone else with us to make sure things actually go smoothly this time?"

Emerald Sustrai giggled as her partner, Mercury Black, mocked Roman. "What's wrong, afraid of getting your crappy hired goons beaten up by a little girl again?"

Before he had a chance to respond, Roman was interrupted by a green-haired man wearing a black fedora. "My my, and here I thought you'd at least be respected amongst your peers, Torchwick. Such a shame." He flashed a wicked smile at Roman, taunting him even further.

Feeling defeated, Roman pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright then, what would _you_ suggest, Hazama? I know you and Cinder have your orders straight from the top, so you must have a plan to distract the cops? They have those damned patrols all over this city!"

Cinder clapped both her hands together, a wide smile on her face. "Ah yes, a _distraction_. I believe we have just the man to provide that for us. Wouldn't you agree, Azrael?"

The large man, who had require two seats to support his weight, leaned over the table. The man's massive muscles and tribal tattoos were draped in long, blue hair. He spoke in a powerful, booming voice that even Cinder found intimidating. "Come on, those weaklings wouldn't even make for an _appetizer_! Can't you provide me with a REAL challenge?!"

Doing her best to maintain her composure, Cinder answered the massive beast of a man. "Well, I can't even begin to think what a waste it'd be for the Mad Dog of Vacuo not to pursue a rematch with the famous new Field Captain of the Vale Police Department…"

"You don't mean to say that it's _him_."

"That's right, Mad Dog. Kagura Mutsuki has seen quite the promotion recently."

Azrael's smile twisted as he began to laugh, shaking the table as he did so. "A chance to battle the Black Knight once again… AMAZING! Just give the order, 'boss'! I'll show you more than just a distraction… I'll have these so-called 'Enforcers of the Law' begging on their hands and knees!"

Unphased by Azrael's outburst, Adachi checked his scroll. "I've gotta get going, Cinder. Unlike most of you idiots, I've got an _actual_ job to do, and Dojima's been getting even more pissy than usual, so I can't be screwing around any longer. I got you the info you needed, so as far as I'm concerned, my job's done here."

Cinder nodded. "You may take your leave, Adachi. We'll be in touch as things progress."

Adachi got out of his seat to leave the building, passing by White Fang guards as he walked off.

"So then, it's already decided that Emerald and Mercury will remain with me to perform reconnaissance," Cinder said, addressing those left at the table. "So you'll backing up Roman's supply run in case anything happens, Gordeau."

His hands resting comfortably in his pockets, the infamous Grim Reaper sighed. He'd been known as one of the most successful bounty hunters in Vacuo, so he couldn't help but be disappointed in his most recent assignment. "Giving me the bodyguard job again, boss? I'm starting to get bored seeing so little action."

Emerald cut in, irritated with the dark-haired bounty hunter. "You should be happy that she gives you any work at all, Grim Reaper! If it were me, I'd make you wait on the sidelines."

Gordeau chuckled in response. "Ya, you _look_ like you'd be the boring type to play the waiting game."

Before Cinder could try and stop the two from arguing further, Hazama stood up. "I believe that'll be everyone accounted for, so if you all don't mind, I'd like to speak to our stunningly _beautiful_ leader in private." Although his complement was clearly disingenuous, Cinder could see that the man had something of importance to share. Dismissing the others, she followed him into a separate room, filled with emptied filing cabinets and pots whose plants had died many years ago.

"Although my position in the Atlas Bureau of Intelligence allows a great deal of information gathering," Hazama noted, "I've had to forgo some of the research in order to cover-up any information regarding the Murakumo Project.."

Cinder crossed her arms, concerned with how Hazama had suddenly brought this up. "Salem told me that all details of the projects failure had been destroyed. Are you telling me that the information is still archived?! This was YOUR responsibility!"

Hazama put his hands on his hips. "Oh my, if I didn't know any better, I'd think that you've lost faith in me. But to answer your question, I _did_ ensure that the cover-up happened, at least initially. However, a certain ambitious feline has been looking to uproot our plans, and may have managed to acquire information regarding Number 13's whereabouts."

Her eyes widened as Cinder quickly realized who Hazama was referring to. Biting her lip, she mentioned a name she'd hoped to never hear again. "Kokonoe of Sector Seven… if she releases that to the public, she'll ruin everything we've worked for!"

"Now don't stress over trash like her, Cinder. You'll put another wrinkle on that poor face of yours."

"Do NOT test me, Hazama!" A fiery Aura began to radiate around Cinders' body.

"Please, _relax_ already. I said that Kokonoe _may_ possess such information, but even if she did, it'd be vague at best. If she had anything tangible on us, she would have shared it with the Atlesians long ago."

Cinder sighed, relaxing herself as the fire dissipated. "Well then, I suppose that means we may continue with our plan for now. So long as the final phase is complete before anything major happens, it won't matter what that damned faunus does anyhow."

Hazama smiled. "I couldn't _possibly_ agree more."

…..

"Let me tell you, being in a team with mostly girls really isn't all that it's cracked up to be." Yang Xiao Long explained to her sister the pains of an all-female team. "Makoto might be pretty fun to hang out with, but between her boundless energy and Noel's 'cooking', It can honestly be kinda overwhelming at times. Well, at least Kanji is pretty chill. He actually stitched up a hole in my pillow for me!"

Ruby nodded along. "I'm not saying that it's _all_ that bad. I just wish things could've gone better with Weiss. I apologized to her, but she doesn't seem to want anything to do with me. If I was in a team with you two, maybe things would be better than they are now. The guys in Team HRRN are pretty cool, especially Ragna, but it's like they've just decided that I'm nothing more than 'Recon Girl'. I want to fight _beside_ them, not just scout around!"

Yang cocked her head to the side. With the sunlight outside Beacon hitting the two sisters, it seems as though Yangs' hair had a shine all its own. "Our teams have only just started doing mock missions. Your teammates shouldn't just be making you do one role. The whole point of team building is to work together!"

"I know! I just wish that I could work up the courage to say something." The young student collapsed onto the grass as she let out a heavy sigh. "I just don't want to let Narukami down. He asked me to take this role, and was so _nice_ about it."

Sitting down alongside her sister, Yang spoke bluntly. "Yu seems like a really considerate guy. If anything, he probably just hasn't found a way to keep you close by without wasting the speed advantage that you have with your Semblance. Just be honest with him, and I'm sure he'll find an alternative."

"I guess you're right.."

"With that nonsense out of the way, I'd say it's about time we discuss the _real_ topic of today." Yang sat up as she began to flip through her scroll. "It's pretty obvious to me that you like Ragna a bit more than the others'."

Attempting to dodge the question, Ruby closed her eyes. "I mean, he's pretty cool, but I don't think of him like _that_."

Yang chuckled. "Oh sure, you keep telling yourself that."

"Do you consider it your job in life to tease me, Yang?"

"I'm your sister, Ruby. If I don't do it, who will?"

….

Weiss Schnee, the heiress to the prestigious Schnee Dust Company, had found herself running an interesting errand for her father. Although her training in Team TWNE was going well enough, she still had to complete occasional tasks to ensure that her allowance wouldn't be revoked.

Her instructions had brought her to a massive building overlooking the city. At the base of this large structure stood a red-haired woman in a black bodysuit, wearing a white fur coat and surrounded by men in black tuxedos. "Ah, you must be Weiss. I've been looking forward to your arrival." The woman extended her hand in greeting. "A shame that your father couldn't make it."

The heiress shook the woman's hand. "Unfortunately, there were other matters for him to attend to. I hope discussing matters of business won't be hindered by this."

"Not at all, Ms. Schnee. I have a meal prepared for the two of us as well, if you are ready."

"Of course, Ms. Kirijo. It shall be an honor."

 **A/N**

 **Howdy fella's! It's that time again! I'm making it a quick one this time.**

 **The team that Yang is in is called Team MNYK (Manic). I will address Weiss' Team at a later date.**

 **The Kirijo Group will be a major Dust distribution company, and a competitor with the Schnee Dust Company. However, Mitsuru will naturally have other projects going on behind the scenes.**

 **That's all for now! See ya'll in the next chapter!**


	6. To Become A Team - Yu Narukami

"...another minute in that class, and I swear I would've fallen asleep!"

Gathered together after class at one of the school's balconies, the members of Teams HRRN and MNYK had become fast friends with one another, enjoying the casual banter as they worked on various written assignments.

"I'm with ya on that one, Hyde." Kanji Tatsumi was still having difficulty in his classes, and couldn't help but groan. "C'mon Makoto, you gotta give me a break for once! I'm _dyin'_ over here!"

Team MNYK's leader was Makoto Nanaya, a faunus with squirrel attributes, wore an orange and black jacket to complement black, leather pants. Her ears twitched and tail flicked back-and-forth as she listened to Kanji's complaint. "Not gonna happen! No teammate of mine will be let off the hook with 'barely passing' as a final grade!"

Her blonde teammate, Noel Vermillion tried to comfort Kanji. "Don't worry Kanji, you only have a little bit more studying to do! Here, I made something for you to snack on in the meantime.

 _We've been down this road before,_ Yu thought, remembering Chie and Yukiko's previous attempts at cooking. _Stay strong, Kanji! I believe in you!_

Ruby and Yang giggled as Kanji cried in the background. As the team's resumed their joking and studies, Yu approached the two sisters. "I hope you don't mind me cutting in, but do you mind if I ask you a couple questions, Ruby?"

"Sure, no problem!" Ruby said. "Although, if it's about our homework, I might have to get back to you on that."

Yu chuckled in response. "We can go over all that later. I actually wanted to ask you about your role as our Reconnaissance member."

Yang chimed in. "Actually, Ruby has something she'd like to say about that!" She smiled at her sister as the younger of the two tried to find the right words. "Uh… about that… as much as I appreciate you giving me a unique job, I was hoping I could stick with the team from now on…"

"I see…" Yu smiled as he pushed his glasses up. "That actually makes things easier, as I was going to have you travel with the team from now on, anyhow."

"Wait, really? I mean, that's awesome!" Ruby appeared giddy as she pumped her fist.

"I wanted to ensure that you had the skill set to guide us out of danger if necessary. You've shown me that you're the best scout we could ever ask for. That said, I'd say that it's time to integrate you into our team attacks. As things have been going, we've been playing our fights entirely by ear, so this'll give us a chance to get our teams movements synced. Besides, you're the one who comes up with the names, so it's only fair that you get to participate."

As Ruby Rose jumped for joy, Yu added one more thing. "I might be the leader, but at the end of the day, my Persona is what defines me on the team. Hyde's Semblance is incredibly potent against the Grimm, but lacks the same strength against opponents with their own Aura's. As for Ragna, his power and skill in battle may be incredible, but he often seems to forget that he's on a team. I think that with your speed and quick thinking, you'll one day make for a far better tactician than I."

"Ah, no way! _You're_ our leader, Narukami!" Ruby insisted. "I'm just glad that I get to see action with my team! Well, even if it's just practice exercises…"

Their oldest teammate cut in, having woken up from a short nap. "Speaking of seeing action, how about we put these 'team attacks' to practice?" Ragna threw on his red jacket as he looked to Ruby. "Besides, you and I haven't had a chance to try out that crazy maneuver you were talking about!"

Hyde grinned, joining his teammates. "C'mon Ruby, it's training time! We're gonna put every other team here to shame!"

Ruby beamed with joy. "Alright, let's do this!"

 _These are the first steps… Don't worry Headmaster, I'll do everything I can to help Ruby- no, to help EVERYONE reach their full potential!_

…

Beneath the halls of Beacon Academy, Ozpin looked over a row of man-sized cylinders, each one empty, except two. One of the tubes held a young woman, her eyes closed in a chemically-induced sleep. In the other was a tall figure, its body encased in white armor that concealed the one slumbering within.

"Headmaster, is something the matter?"

Removed from his train of thought, Ozpin turned to see Glynda Goodwitch approaching him. "Glynda, you caught me off guard. I'm afraid I was lost in thought. Remembering old times can be just as painful as it is soothing."

The professor looked over the armored figure, her eyes surveying its features. "He comes from a very dark place in Remnants' history. When you're down here, I can't help but worry about where that darkness takes you, Headmaster."

"Well, it wasn't necessarily _all_ bad memories." Ozpin smiled as he thought of the six heroes who had fought together to save Remnant from the onslaught of the Black Beast. "I just wish that there were more of us alive to reminisce.'

"The Great Sage and The Platinum Alchemist…" Glynda knew little of their story, outside of what had been written in history books. "Perhaps I should ask Dr. Oobleck to include them in a future lecture."

"I'm afraid that their tale includes a certain figure from my past that I'd prefer _not_ to remember…"

"Yuki Terumi…" Glynda knew the man only by reputation, but was aware of his history with the other members of the Six. "Wasn't it Lord Hakumen who had slain him long ago? Why keep him in stasis if Terumi is no longer a threat?"

"There are other threats to account for besides him," Ozpin noted, leaving the tubes as he walked towards an elevator door. "Like _her_ …"

 _Yes, that's right. I needn't worry myself over Yuki Terumi… and yet, even now I can feel his malice tainting the air around us._

…

Late that evening, three boys were hanging around outside the Academy. Although it was a school night, they had agreed to set aside time to talk, with Jaune seated on a wooden bench.

"Hey man, you've gotta let us know what's goin' on!" Kanji Tatsumi, who had ditched Makoto an hour ago, was pressuring his friend to open up. "You've been actin' all down-in-the-dumps like that for a while, now."

"He's right, Jaune." Hyde sat down on the bench beside Jaune Arc. "You're a leader now, so you need to be willing to be honest with people. If Narukami has something on his mind, he says it. Even if his thoughts come off as a bit weird at times, he holds nothing back."

Kanji nodded. "Back at our old school, there were plenty of times where I'd wish he'd kept his mouth shut. But that just ain't his style, I guess."

Jaune reluctantly opened up. "Alright guys, I get it. It's just that someone has dirt on me, and I can't afford not to do what he says. Most of my teammates have no idea what's going on either, and I'm trying to keep them out of this."

"Wait a minute, you're getting blackmailed?" Hyde grabbed Jaunes' shoulder. "Who's doing this? I need a name!"

"...Cardin Winchester." A pained expression fell upon Jaunes face. "He's been on my case for a while, but a few days ago he found out something I'd been trying to keep a secret, and now he's ordering me around, making me do all his work for him."

Cracking his knuckles, Kanji recognised the name of that bully all too well. "Winchester, huh? Now _that's_ a guy that I'd like to put in the friggen' dirt. When I saw him pickin' on Velvet the other day, I almost lost my cool."

Hyde let out a sigh. "Ragna, on the other hand, got right up in Cardin's face. If the rest of us weren't there to diffuse things, there would've been one hell of a fight that day."

Jaune chuckled in response. "It's nice having guys like Ragna around, though. It makes putting up with Cardin a little easier." The blonde student leaned forward, resting his head in his hands. "I'm sorry that I got you guys involved in this. I don't want to make anyone worry, but I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do."

Patting his friend on the back, Hyde smiled. "Our team's will all be together for the trip out to Forever Fall, so if you can hold out for just a few more days, we'll have an opportunity to clear things up with Cardin, whether he likes it or not."

 **A/N**

 **Howdy fella's! I'm sorry that this chapter took so long. After playing the CTB Beta religiously (and sucking at it, btw), getting severely sick, and having my tires slashed by some random junkie, my weeks have been a bit more eventful than anticipated. Regardless, let's answer some questions!**

 **The Murakumo units are clones of Saya, each embedded with a unique Dust-type fuel cell that enables manipulation of floating blades and their artificial "Semblances". Each unit, while primarily still organic, features numerous synthetic parts. Saya was adopted at her early childhood by an Atlesian scientist who had been Administratively Separated from the Atlas Military. Although unofficial by Atlas records, this man had been given a special assignment from the Imperator herself, and thus Saya became the first Murakumo unit. As to why the project failed, and where the Murakumo are now, you'll just have to wait and see.**

 **Jin Kisaragi was adopted into a wealthy and prestigious family within Atlas. He will be brought into the story at a later time, but I will say that although his relationship with Ragna isn't friendly by any means, you will notice less animosity between the two in this fanfiction than in their original franchise.**

 **The final question I got was in regards to Cross Tag Battle itself. While not relevant to Against Despair, I'll do my best to answer. In my honest opinion, while the more experienced characters in RWBY could hold their own against Persona and Under Night characters, the power gap between them and most main characters within the Blazblue cast is absolutely ABSURD. I have little clue how they'd balance this lore-wise, and a part of me doubts that Arcsys will even attempt to do much power balancing at all. Adding in the fact that it's V1-2 version of Team RWBY vs CP-CF variants of Blazblue's characters, I can't realistically think of a scenario where Ruby and her teammates would have much of a chance in a 4v4 battle. If they were fighting just Noel/Makoto/Tager, then they'd have a good chance, but against someone like Ragna, Jubei, Nine, or (worst case) Azrael? No way in hell.**

 **I think that's it for now, so I'll see ya'll in the next chapter!**


	7. Flaring Tempers - Weiss Schnee

"I'm sorry, Ms. Schnee. I have no intention of working alongside your family in any manner. The Kirijo Group will remain independent of foreign contracts, as we always have."

Those words played on repeat in Weiss' mind as she walked out from her morning classes. Mitsuru Kirijo, who had inherited control of the Kirijo Group as a teenager, had completely refused to partner with the Schnee Dust Company, instead preferring to maintain the competitive relationship that their respective families had established long before her father's passing many years ago.

 _The nerve of that woman!_ The young heiress' mind filled with frustration as she walked through the halls of Beacon Academy, her pace quickening to nearly a jog. _My father suggested to her such a great business offer, and she flat-out refused! Just who does she think she is-_

Before Weiss could finish her thought, she had bumped into another student, knocking them both on to the floor.

As she got back up to her feet, the white-haired student began to apologize. "Please forgive me, I wasn't paying proper attention to my surroundings." However, as her body and eyes moved back up, Weiss realized who she had collided with. "Oh nevermind, it's just _you_."

Ruby Rose, still trying to process what had just happened, sat up, trying to massage her now-sore rear end. "Uhhh….. Wait, Weiss? What are you doing here?"

"Leaving." Weiss scoffed as she turned to walk past Ruby, but was stopped by someone much taller than either of them.

An older student stood before the heiress, his white-hair doing little to conceal the look of displeasure in his eyes. Though she noticed his heterochromia, Weiss chose to pay this no mind. "Excuse me, may I help you?..."

"No, but you can help _her_." The young man pointed to Ruby. "That little accident there was your fault, and you were about to just leave her there. That's pretty damn rude, don't you think?"

Rolling her eyes, Weiss reluctantly turned to help Ruby, lifting her back on to my feet. "I suppose that was inappropriate of me. After all, that technically _was_ my fault."

Ruby laughed a bit, though she still seemed a bit unbalanced after standing up. "Don't worry about it, Weiss… Stuff like this happens all the time…"

The tall student crossed his arms, wearing an aggravated expression as he approached the two girls. "Just so you know, that's my teammate you almost ditched, there. If I see you acting rude to her like that again, I'll be the one putting YOU on the floor, got it?!"

Appalled by the student's attitude towards her, Weiss snapped back at him. "Just who in the world do you think you're speaking to?!"

"Oh, I know _exactly_ who I'm speaking to. I'm speaking to Weiss Schnee, the stuck-up child who gets all her money from a certain rich bastard who insulted my Master three years ago. Apparently, she's also a little bitch who doesn't know what respect for others even is!" He narrowed his eyes as he came face-to-face with Weiss. "I'm going to say this just once; nobody in this school gives a _fuck_ about your connection to the SDC, or your piece of shit father!"

As Weiss' eyes widened in anger, Ruby cut in to try and resolve things before they could get worse. "Oh, don't worry about Ragna, he's like this with everyone!" Ruby nervously tried to laugh the whole issue off, though it seemed as though sparks were about to fly between the two between them. As their tempers flared, students began to crowd around them, likely expecting a fight to break out. "Wait, please don't fight you guys, I'm sure that we can talk all this out!"

The heiress grit her teeth as she looked up at Ragna. "I don't know who you or your so-called "Master" are, but if you don't take all that back, I'll make sure you regret it! I won't have some common gutter filth tarnish my family name!"

"Then do something about it, 'heiress'! Or are you all talk like your dad?!"

Just as things were about to come to blows, two girls ran to intervene. One of the two was Tsubaki, who was followed by a short, brown-haired girl. She approached Weiss and Ragna, still in her school uniform like Weiss and Ruby. "Weiss, pay Ragna no further mind. He's made a habit of starting fights with other students."

The other girl nodded, adding that "Guys like him don't deserve your time, Weiss. Just forget about him and come back to our room!"

Weiss continued to meet Ragna's glare for a few moments, before closing her eyes. She took a deep breath, then turned to leave, without saying another word. As the heiress left, Ruby's eyes began to tear up. She covered her eyes as she ran off in the opposite direction, leaving Ragna the Bloodedge behind, though he could hear her speak as she sped away. "Why do things always turn out like this?!"

Ragna clenched his fists. _Dammit… I got carried away again. Narukami's not gonna be happy about this…_

…..

Blake Belladonna walked through a small-town mall miles off from Beacon Academy, as the arrival of the weekend gave her plenty of time to explore outside of Vale's Centralized City. Although the boys in Team SKRB were generally pretty quiet and respectful, Blake still felt the need to get away from the close quarters of their room, even if only for a short time to get some groceries. She also wanted to find part-time employment.

As she looked through a selection of various fish products, a blonde boy in an apron approached her, rose held in his hands. "Excuse me, miss. I've worked here for quite some time, and may I say, you are simply the most gorgeous little flower I've ever seen walk through this mall."

Taken off guard by the boys horrific attempt at flirting, Blake took a step back. "I'm sorry, but I'm not exactly interested in someone I've just barely met…"

Laughing in a way that seemed far too forced, the blonde continued. "Oh, I don't mean to _bear-_ don you, miss. I only wish to bask in the warmth of your radiance!"

Just as Blake was about to hit the boy, someone grabbed the flirt by the shoulder. A brown-haired boy, wearing a similar working apron, had an infuriated look upon his face. "You'll be basking in the feeling of _unemployment_ if you don't get back to work, Teddie!"

The blonde named Teddie immediately straightened up as he realized he'd been caught. "S-s-s-sorry Yosuke! I won't leave my section again, cub's honor!"

Rolling his eyes, Yosuke sent Teddie on his way. "And put your dumb bear costume on, we've got a flash sale in the bakery department!" He turned to face Blake, as his expression shifted to a considerably more friendly appearance. "My apologies for the inconvenience, ma'am! Our employee's aren't usually this unprofessional, but I'll make sure that your experience from here on out is a great one!"

Blake smiled in response. "No worries, I've dealt with worse than him before." She glanced at the label on Yosuke's apron, which read _YOSUKE HANAMURA: Junior Assistant Manager_. "Excuse me, but would you know if there are any positions here for full-time students?"

Yosuke nodded, his expression mellowed out from before. "Of course there is! If you follow me, I can get you started with an application!"

 **A/N**

 **Howdy fella's! Sorry for taking so long again, I just managed to get past some bad writers block, and with the release of BBTAG (and my newfound love for Killing Floor 2) I've had lots of distractions. Also, somebody created a TVTropes page for Against Despair! I don't know who did this, but thank you kind stranger! YOU DA MAN!**

 **But enough about me, let's get to answering some questions!**

 **The Imperator is indeed Hades: Izanami, although I've been considering adding elements of Izanami-no-Okami/Marie as well. However, in this story, you shouldn't think of Izanami and Saya as necessarily the same individual (nor are they entirely separate beings). There will be a proper reveal as the story progresses, so please be patient!**

 **Although faunus are typically human-like, but with animal features, Jubei will still appear as a sort of "cat-person" with an almost entirely feline body, just like his appearance in Blazblue. While this will certainly be uncommon in Remnant, I had an idea on how to make this work: Jubei will be known as a "Purebreed", which is essentially a rare type of faunus that carries primarily animal traits, as opposed to the more human-like "Halfbreed".**

 **The Team names won't be changed until after the Fall of Beacon.**

 **I will elaborate more on the Black Beast in the future, but I will say that prior to its "birth", Remnant was still full of conflict between many different nations. This constant state of conflict created massive amounts of negative emotional energy (a perfect place for the Grimm to spawn and wreak havoc).**

 **Jaune and Pyrrha are still in the same team.**

 **The ages of Team HRRN's members are Ruby (15 years old), Hyde (17), Yu (17), and Ragna (18).**

 **Any questions that I haven't addressed will be answered later on in another chapter. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go pass out, because I'm incredibly tired. See ya'll in the next chapter!**


	8. Flaring Tempers - Hyde Kido

The trip out to Forever Fall had arrived, and Hyde had found himself collecting sap from the unique red trees that grew there (as per Goodwitch's instruction), alongside his teammates and the member's of Team's MNYK, TWNE, and JMPR. Team CRDL was suspiciously absent, however, having taken Jaune with them down an alternate path from where the main group of students were working.

Although Hyde didn't know the cause of the recent tension between two of his teammates, it had become abundantly clear to him that Ragna and Ruby weren't getting along as they normally would. Ruby had become uncharacteristically quiet and unmotivated, and Ragna had started to spend more time training alone. Yu was in the process of trying to get the two to reconcile, but his progress appeared to be minimal. _I care for our team, Narukami… But whatever those two have going on is clearly between the both of them. At this point, you're just adding fuel to a dumpster fire. Besides, I've got another fire I've got to put out._

Since his teammates were preoccupied, Hyde snuck past them to try and meet up with Kanji, who he'd become fast friends with at Beacon. As he passed Team TWNE, he recognised Tsubaki from the bet he made with Pyrrha. Weiss was well known around the school for her status as heiress, so he recognised her right off the bat. The third girl was Nanase, a student he had met before coming to Beacon. Most of his encounters with her ended in horrible misunderstandings, so he did his best to avoid the girl at every turn. The last of their team was a tall, well-built boy with white hair and dressed in loose-fitting robes. Hyde hadn't met the guy before, but hoped that if they did meet, it'd be somewhere _far_ from an arena.

Passed them were Mika, Pyrrha, and Rise of Team JMPR. The latter of the team, Rise Kujikawa, was an ex-pop idol who had abandoned her promising career to become a Huntress. In spite of her overwhelming popularity among her fans in Beacon, Rise came across as much more humble and respectful than Hyde had envisioned when he'd first heard of her arrival, trying to help others out with various tasks, and joining study groups to connect with other students. According to Narukami, the two of them had once attended the same school, though she had returned to the idol business prior to the Grimm attack on Yasogami High. As things were, it seemed unclear whether Rise would stick with her new path at Beacon, or return to the spotlight once more.

As for the remaining members, Hyde was already quite familiar with Pyrrha, the still-undefeated arena champion, and Mika was… special. As he snuck by, he could see the twin-tailed girl crying and throwing a tantrum over a shattered mason jar. _Seriously?... It's like somebody put a five-year-old in the body of a teenager. We're all lucky that she took off those massive gauntlets of hers._

Lastly was Team MNYK. Makoto and Yang had taken the collection of sap to an entirely different level, trying to outdo each other in a contest to see which of the two could acquire more sap than the other. With Noel nowhere to be seen, Hyde waved to Kanji from behind a tree to get his attention. Jogging over to Hyde, Kanji grinned eagerly. "Alright, is Operation Asshole Beatdown about to begin?!"

Hyde couldn't help but facepalm in response to such an absurd title. "Dude, that could easily be taken the wrong way," he said, trying not to think about the sexual implications of Kanji's ridiculous operation name.

Rolling his eyes, Kanji shook his head in frustration. "Whatever man, let's just go deal with Cardin and get back before Goodwitch realizes we're gone."

"Agreed, we don't have much time." Hyde followed Kanji down the path that their friend had been forced down.

…

Jaune braced himself as he was thrown straight into one of the trees by Cardin. Having defied Cardin's orders to use the sap to lure his Rapier Wasps to Pyrrha as revenge for humiliating him in class, all the poor student do was bear the pain as the members of Team CRDL took their frustrations out on him.

"You just never learn, do you, Jaune? It's almost as if you _want_ me to get you expelled." Cardin casually walked up to the beaten and bruised boy, before adding an extra kick in the ribs for good measure. "We could've been good friends, you and I… Well don't worry, Jaune. After we're done here, you'll be packing up and headed on home, where you belong."

As he struggled to stand back up, Jaune looked Cardin in the eyes. "Do whatever you want, Cardin. I'm done taking your crap! I won't follow your orders, and I won't betray my team!"

A sudden rush of pain and adrenaline shot through Jaune's body. He collapsed back to the ground, grasping his head as an intense throbbing shook his body to the core. A voice echoed through his mind, asking him a simple question: " _Doth thou desire the power to best thine enemies?_ "

Before he could make sense of the strange voice, another kick from Cardin sent Jaune rolling on to his back. The leader of the bullies laughed as he watched the blonde clutch his sides in agony. The other Team CRDL members joined in, laughing along as they ganged up on the boy.

Suddenly, a steel folding chair flew through the air, hitting one of the bullies, Russell, in the back and knocking him down to the ground. Emerging from the brush, Kanji approached the members of Team CRDL, followed by Hyde. "You punks… gangin' up on one guy like that…" Kanji cracked his knuckles as he grit his teeth in anger. "I ain't standin' around to watch you asshole's get way with this. You're all DEAD, YA HEAR ME?"

Unimpressed by Kanji's entrance, Cardin turned to face the two who had appeared. "This doesn't concern you, Tatsumi. You and you're pal over there ought to turn around and head back to the others, unless you're looking to end up like this loser." Cardin chuckled as Jaune, spitting out blood from a hit to his jaw, tried once again to get on his feet, only to be kicked down by the remaining Team CRDL members.

"We're putting an end to this, Cardin." Hyde stepped forward, drawing out Insulator. "Being a bully is one thing. Beating up our friend like this is something entirely different, and you've crossed that line."

Dismissing the accusation, Cardin looked to Sky and Dove. "Deal with these losers, I'm not finished with Jaune, yet."

As a fight was about to break out, Russel, who'd just gotten back up, pointed in a direction behind them all. "Guy's, we gotta run! THERE'S AN URSA!"

From seemingly out of nowhere, a massive Grimm burst toward Team CRDL at high speed, aiming directly for Cardin. As Cardin grabbed his mace to try and block the attack, Jaune pulled out his shield, jumping in front of Cardin and guarding against a powerful swipe from the Ursa. Although he'd prevented significant Aura damage, the force of the attack was still enough to knock both Jaune and Cardin on to the ground.

Seeing the other CRDL members run off, Hyde and Kanji sprung into action. "Pin it down, Take-Mikazuchi!" Kanji's Persona appeared in front of the Grimm, grabbing it by the neck and slamming it into the ground. Following up, Hyde leapt into the air, landing on top of the Ursa and plunging Insulator straight through its head.

As the Grimm's body slowly vanished as result of the killing blow, gunshots could be heard in the background. Hyde immediately looked up in the direction of the shots, recognizing the owner. _Those came from Noel's guns!_ Seemingly thinking the same thing, Jaune jumped back on to his feet, sprinting off toward the sound of the shots. _Crap, I can't let him go off on his own!_

Before Hyde could act, Goodwitch ran up to the boys, followed by students from the other teams. "Russell told me about the Grimm! Are you all alright? You shouldn't have split from the group to begin with!"

Hyde pointed in the direction of the shots. "Professor, Noel's in trouble! Jaune ran off to try and help her, but he's badly injured!"

Glynda nodded in understanding. "Follow me, everyone!"

…..

It wasn't that long ago that Noel had walked off from her Team. She'd only wanted to get a bit of peace and quiet away from Yang and Mokoto, but this decision had put her in a very dangerous position as she barely managed to dodged the attacks from a large Alpha Ursa. Although she had laid an exceptional amount of fire into the Grimm with her twin handguns, Bolverk, the thick, bulkier armor of the Alpha allowed it to shrug off the majority of the damage.

From the bushes, Jaune dashed out toward the Grimm, knocking it back with his shield. The Alpha, while briefly stunned from the impact, didn't have any intention of backing off. Jaune stood in front of Noel as he blocked blow after blow from the retaliating Ursa. "I won't let you hurt her! He screamed out in defiance as he continued to defend against the relentless swipes from the beast's claws.

Seeing the Ursa rise on to its hind legs to try and overpower Jaune, Noel saw an opportunity to counterattack. Quickly sliding under Jaune's legs, she fired rapidly into the Grimm's exposed underbelly, sending it reeling backwards as she rolled back on to her feet. Channeling her Aura through Bolverk, she fired a final charged shot into the beast, causing its body to split wide open, before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

In spite of the pain and fatigue throughout his body, Jaune managed to smile widely at Noel. "Wow, you're pretty good at this! I'm Jaune, by the way. Jaune Arc."

Blushing slightly, Noel thanked the boy who had come to her aid. "I-I-I'm Noel Vermillion! Thank you for coming to help me!"

Jaune chuckled. "Hehe… don't mention it… What's a shield if you don't use it?..."

Suddenly, he collapsed on to the ground, having blacked out from the fatigue and pain throughout his body. Shocked, Noel ran over to his side, checking his pulse. Though his heart still beat, he was nearly motionless, aside from the subtle breathing that escaped from his chest.

"Noellers, are you okay?!"

Noel looked up to see her friend and leader, Makoto Nanaya, run up to her. She was followed by the entire group of students, as well as the Professor, who appeared flustered by the days events. "Ms. Vermillion, what happened here?!" Glynda yelled out, the stress in her voice apparent. "What happened to Mr. Arc?!"

Noel looked over Jaune again, who had risked his life so eagerly to protect her. "He… he saved my life…"

 **A/N**

 **Hey fella's. Thanks for being patient with me, I know this chapter shouldn't have taken so long, sorry.**

 **I still intend on getting to proper team-building and fight scenes, but there are a few elements of the story I need to square away first. For example, a proper introduction for Rise, Ragna and Ruby's relationship (current and future), as well as the direction I'm taking with Jaune. Some character changes I've considered may even be too extreme of an adaptation, and I'm not looking to piss anyone off.**

 **Good news: We're getting closer to the equivalent of the RWBY Volume 1 ending! This means that we'll be seeing Azrael, Gordeau, Cinder, and Roman within the next 3-4 chapters if things go according to plan. Of course, I have to tendency to change things as I go, but for now this is my goal. I know one of you guys mentioned that the story is progressing too slowly, and I don't wanna bore anyone to death.**

 **One of you fella's asked about power scaling in regards to Against Despair. While I can't really get into that publicly (spoilers are bad, mmkay?), I'm willing to answer questions through private message. I also added my Discord to my bio, so if you wanna message me there, that works too.**

 **One last thing: A big HELL YA to the fella's working on the TVtropes page. You really make it look professional! I appreciate the support you guys have given, and I hope the story continues to keep up with your standards!**

 **Alrighty, I think that's it. Thank you all for following Against Despair! I'll see ya'll in the next chapter!**


	9. To Become A Team - Ragna the Bloodedge

Although his teammates and friends had come to visit regularly, Jaune Arc had remained bedridden in the nurse's office for almost a week, and while nearing recovery, was required to remain where he was for another day. Team CRDL had been put on an in-house suspension, but Hyde and Kanji ended up being in trouble as well, though they were given a lighter punishment: mandatory study sessions with Professor Port (something Ragna couldn't help but laugh in response to).

Ragna had come to check on Jaune, but found that Ruby, Mika, and Rise had already been chatting him up during their break. Realizing that it was too late to turn around, he headed in, giving a casual greeting to Jaune. "Hey man, how's the recovery going?"

Jaune smiled in appreciation. "I'll be back on my feet by tomorrow! Nurse Faye-Ling insisted on another days worth of bed rest, but I'm feeling pretty great, aside from this weird lingering pain in my head… Well either way, we should spar for a bit once I'm back on the regular schedule, Ragna."

"You might wanna start slow, Arc. I ain't a very good teacher, at least not like Pyrrha." Ragna realized that she wasn't by Jaunes' side as she usually was. "Speaking of the champ, where is that chick, anyway?"

Mika interrupted Jaune before he could answer. "She couldn't stay because she got challenged again! But there's nobody in the world that could beat Pyrrha!"

Smirking, Ragna thought to himself. _Damn, I better challenge her myself, before she accumulates too large of a waiting list. At this point, it's basically Nikos versus the whole damn school._

Rise, who'd been watching Ruby's silence, had decided to intervene. "Hey Ruby, can I borrow you for a second? It'll be just for a bit."

"Um, ya I guess that's fine, Rise." Ruby followed her out of the office, into Beacon's bright corridors. "So… what's up?"

Giving Ruby a stern look, Rise Kujikawa got straight to the point. "You and Ragna… something happened between the two of you, didn't it? I don't need to scan you with Himiko to know that you aren't acting the same way around him as you used to."

"Rise… you don't need to worry about me, really!" Attempting to fake a smile, Ruby tried to brush aside the issue. "Ragna and I are perfectly fine!"

Unconvinced, pop star pressed further. "You're poker face needs work, Ruby. You were sticking to him like glue not too long ago. If you don't face this issue, you'll never be able to move forward as teammates. Trust me, trying to bottle away your feelings will only make things worse in the end."

For a few seconds, Ruby remained silent. Finally, she gave in, answering Rise's question. "I was so close to finally working things out with Weiss, but Ragna took things too far. He got up in her face, taunting her and trying to provoke a fight. I'd always thought he was a good person at heart, and even now I still do. But, he just doesn't know when enough is enough! There's a big difference between helping friends and making enemies, but it's all the same to him. I just wish he would slow down and listen to me once in a while…"

Letting out a sigh, Rise followed up. "Ragna is like a human missile. He sees something that he doesn't like, and chases it down at full speed. I agree that he takes things too far… but you know why he does this, don't you?"

Ruby shook her head.

"It's because, deep down, he cares for the people around him. He picks fights with bullies because he hates seeing people get robbed of their chance to grow stronger, and I'm sure that he was tired of seeing you be a doormat to Weiss' snobbish behavior."

"I mean… Weiss _is_ a little rough around the edges," Ruby admitted. "I guess if you think about it, Ragna and her aren't all too different when it comes to having rough attitudes. Go figure..."

"Whatever issues those two have are between them. Either they'll work things out, our they won't. What's important here is that the two of you can be partners again." Rise gave a bit of a mischievous smile as she followed up. "Or maybe you wanted to be something _more_ than just teammates?"

Shocked, Ruby covered her eyes in embarrassment. "You DID scan me, didn't you?!"

"I _may_ have noticed an increase in pheromone levels… but don't worry, Ruby, I'll keep all that info to myself." Rise's smile was teasingly playful, but she seemed like she was being genuine about keeping her knowledge to herself.

Suddenly, a massive gathering of students, all dressed in various pieces of _Risette_ merchandise. One of the male students pointed in the direction of Ruby and Rise. "There she is! Risette is over by that girl with the dark hair!" They all charged forward, pens and parchment at the ready to demand autographs from their favorite pop idol. The sheer number of students was too much for Ruby to handle, leading her to be knocked down as they all pushed and shoved to make way to Rise.

Trying to avoid being stepped on, Ruby quickly darted back into the nurse's office. As she tried to catch her breath, she saw that Mika had quickly managed to fall asleep on Jaune's legs, while Ragna had taken a seat on the stool next to him.

"It sure is getting loud out there," Jaune noticed, commenting on the ruckus outside. "Is there some sort of event going on?"

"No, it's the _Risette Fan Club_ ," Ruby answered as she dusted herself off. "They're always like this, but that's the first time that I actually got trampled by them…"

"I'm gonna give those jerks a piece of my mind," Ragna stated as he stood up, but Ruby got in his way, trying to block his path. "Please, stop resorting to threats and violence every time things get hectic, Ragna!"

Frowning, Ragna looked down at Ruby. "So you decided to stop giving me the silent treatment." He sat back down, giving in to her request. "Fine, although I'm still not happy with those pricks getting away with whatever they want…"

Although she felt embarrassed, Ruby continued. "I don't want us to keep avoiding each other, I don't want you training alone, and I _really_ don't want to divide our team up. But I had tried so hard to get Weiss to be my friend, and now I don't know if I'll ever get that shot again…"

"I know, Ruby." Ragna admitted that he was at fault. "I'm sorry. Things could've gone better had I shown restraint."

The huntress hugged her older teammate. "You know what? I forgive you."

"...Thank you, Ruby." Hugging her back, Ragna the Bloodedge did his best to hold back his tears..

Jaune smiled at the site of their embrace, though he couldn't help but poke fun. "Awww… now that's _adorable_!"

Ragna gave the blonde student a harsh glare. "Shut it, Arc."

….

"Mutsuki, In my office!"

Kagura Mutsuki, the VPD Field Captain, had spent many years of his young life among the sour crevices of Vacuo's criminal underground, doing various jobs for countless unsavory individuals. However, the stress of the job, along with seeing the effects his work had on families, took too much of a toll on him. After moving to Vale, he promised himself that he'd take the opportunity to change his path in life, enlisting in the Police Academy. After graduation, he'd quickly found himself rising to the top of Vale's most valuable uniformed officers, until his recent promotion had him in one of the highest positions in his district, answering only to one man.

"FC Mutsuki, reporting sir!" Kagura stood at attention after entering the Commissioner's Office.

The Commissioner, Ryotaro Dojima, stood alongside a short, blue-haired girl dressed in a sharp blue business outfit, adorned with a cap that complemented the color scheme.

"Mutsuki, this is Naoto Shirogane, the genius 'Ace Detective' everyone's been talking about." Dojima introduced the young detective. "Since we've gotten numerous _glowing_ reports on her work, we decided to offer her a job, so now she's contracted with our department to help solve some of the recent missing persons cases. The kid ain't a slouch when it comes to self-defense either, but I'll be having her ride with your patrol during her investigation, just in case she ends up biting off more than she can chew."

Naoto extended her hand in greeting. "I look forward to working with you, Field Captain. I've read your file, and I've the utmost confidence in your abilities. Although the sheer number of sexual harassment claims may be cause for concern…"

Kagura eagerly shook her hand. "Those are misunderstandings, Detective! I'm just the kind of man that appreciates a woman's inherent beauty, and may I say, you have _astonishingly_ gorgeous eyes!"

Irritated, Dojima confronted the Field Captain. "Just so you know, I'm not tolerating any bullshit with the contractor. If I hear so much as ONE MENTION of inappropriate behavior, I'm putting your ass on Traffic Control for the next month, got it?!"

The Field Captain gave an innocent smile. "You don't have to worry about a thing, sir!"

The Commissioners eyes rolled as he returned to his desk. "Grab the rookie for your patrol… and Adachi too, while you're at it. Dismissed!"

….

In the middle of an arena, Team SKRB worked in unison against a massive humanoid training dummy to strengthen their team's synergy. Their leader, Seth, called out orders as the bots attacked. "Cruelty Cleave..." He and Lie Ren leapt to the sides of the large dummy, slashing at it's legs. Seth followed up with second command. "...Ensnaring Shroud..." Blake threw out her weapon, tethering it to the dummies arms and using the length of Gambol Shroud to swing around the dummy, wrapping its arms up and preventing it from attacking. "...Now finish it, Ken."

Ken Amada called out his Persona. "Come forth, Nemesis!"

A dark, thin-bodied Persona appeared, a massive sawblade encircling its body. The blade spun up, as Nemesis cast itself at the dummy, sawing it in half.

As the arena lowered, Ken watched the dummy receive repairs from a smaller robot, its small tendril-like cables pulling the severed halves back together. "Alright, way to go, Nemesis!"

The Persona disappeared as Seth gathered his teammates, his expression giving off little emotion. "Well done, everyone. That should be enough for today." The dark-haired boy put away his blades as he faced Blake. "Will you be joining us in the cafeteria, or will there be another evening shift for you?"

"Sorry Seth, but I'm going to be pretty busy tonight and during the weekend." Blake tightened the bow on her head. "I'll try and squeeze in as much training time as I can, though."

"...Understood." Seth turned around, and walked off. Even without his coats large collar there to conceal his face, his expression betrayed not even the slightest shred of a reaction. Ken followed with a smile on his face as he waved goodbye, and Ren holstered his own weapons, politely waving to Blake as he left. "We'll see you later, then. Stay safe on the streets!"

 **A/N**

 **Hey fella's, I'll be working on a proper timeline relatively soon to try and clarify the new history that I wish to establish, and may end up editing a small section of Ragna's intro to account for this. There won't be any MAJOR changes, so please don't worry too much. I know I'm not the most adept writer by any means, and I make HELLA mistakes, but I want to make sure that this timeline is, at the very least, passable. Suggestions are welcome, as always.**

 **Naoto is wearing her initial non-uniform outfit seen in P4/P4G, Rise wears something akin to her P4D dancer outfit, and Ken Amada is his teenage self (think Arena/Ultimax).**

 **Kagura's hair is a tad bit shorter here, so he can fit within police regulations. His outfit is about the same, except all dark blue, with his rank and name on a tag on his chest, and a white "VPD" logo on his cape. His uniform also has multiple pouches for storing dust and a communications/dispatch radio.**

 **Lastly, I wanted to clarify the team name pronunciations. HRRN (Heron), MNYK (Manic), JMPR (Jumper), TWNE (Tune), SKRB (Scarab).**

 **Alright, I think that just about wraps things up for the time being. Message me if I forgot to mention anything (knowing me, I probably did), and thank you for following Against Despair. See ya'll next chapter!**


	10. Against Despair: Timeline and Mythos

Against Despair

 _Timeline and Mythos (tentative)_

Please inform me of any major errors or inconsistencies when compared to RWBY or Shinto lore. I'm still new to this and mistakes are bound to occur.

 **BD - Before Dark War**

 **AD -After Dark War**

 **Year**

 **Ancient Times/Mythos**

Unknown Year BD

The Axiom delivers unto the universe The Gods of Creation, Izanagi and Izanami, who shape Remnants many oceans, islands, and continents. The first animals arrive.

1232 BD

Izanami perishes after the birth of the fire-god, Kagutsuchi. Izanagi travels to the Underworld, only to witness Izanami's deformed state of being, incurring her wrath. Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susano'o come into being, among other gods.

1230 BD

These siblings create humanity and the faunus together, granting to them the gifts of knowledge, creation, destruction and choice. They create four relics that embody these gifts.

1122 BD

From The Axiom emerges Nyx, Goddess of the Night. She is fascinated with humanity and the faunus, and births many gods. However, her fascination slowly evolves into an obsession, and she descends towards Remnant to grant its populace their ultimate desire: death.

1121 BD

A young man, known only as The Messiah, contracts with an entity of The Axiom, Es. To prevent Nyx from destroying all life on Remnant, he becomes The Great Seal, blocking off Nyx's path. Erebus, God of Darkness, attempts to free his mother, but is defeated by Es. She becomes the Keeper of the Seal.

75 BD

The Old Kingdoms' are established. Though life on Remnant is safe, the negative energy brought about by the despair from Nyx's descent remains. A man named Osiris is born, gifted unique powers by Susano'o, but is warned not to have children.

10 BD

The Four Maidens come into being, their power being granted to them by Osiris. The old man falls in love with one of the Maidens, and uses his magic to temporarily take on a younger form. They have an affair, and a peculiar child is born.

 **Old Documented Era**

0 AD

The child is consumed by rage, and The Black Beast appears, bringing with it the Creatures of Grimm, which feed heavily upon the pre-existing negative energy on Remnant. The Maiden is changed forever, becoming the entity known as Salem.

3 AD

Osiris is cursed by the gods to continuously be reincarnated for his actions that brought about the birth of The Black Beast, and the corruption of Salem.

4 AD - 977 AD

The Faunus and humanity fight the Creatures of Grimm for their survival. As The Black Beast moves, it releases a noxious gas cloud which blackens out the sky. Kingdoms are reestablished to defend against the onslaught, but countless die. These are the Dark Days (alter. "Dark War", "Hollow Night").

978 AD

Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu create The Silver-Eyed Warriors to combat the Grimm threat. Susano'o receives his punishment after being linked to Osiris' source of power. Heeding the siblings' call, a son of Nyx arrives. Thanatos, God of Death, strikes down Susano'o. His spirit is separated from his body, which manifests as a man-sized set of armor.

979 - 983 AD

The Maidens are forced to go into hiding and over thousands of years fade into myth and legend. Though stripped of his godly form, Susano'o retains a spectral form, and is eventually reborn as the mortal, Yuuki Terumi. As Terumi travels to reunite with his body, he feels spite towards the gods that betrayed him, and the mortal that disobeyed him. His personality changes, giving way to hatred, malice, and sadism. Though he finds his body, it is being donned by a powerful warrior known as The White Void, Hakumen, who leads a small group in a crusade against the Black Beast and it's army of Grimm. Terumi joins their ranks, alongside Nine, Trinity, Jubei, Valkenhayn, and The Cursed One, Osiris.

984 AD

The Great Sage, Nine, is the first mortal to unlock the "Power of the Soul," or Semblance. The Platinum Alchemist, Trinity Glassfille discovers Dust. Humanity and the faunus turn the tide of the war. Terumi feels an obligation to see to the Black Beast's destruction, but longs to strike against his true enemy. Terumi meets a child named Kazuma Kuval. A link is formed between the two.

984 AD (late)

The Black Beast falls, slain by the Six Heroes, with help from the Silver-Eyed Warriors. The Dark Wars end. Salem disappears. Before he has a chance to join the others in the history books, Osiris is slain by Terumi in a fit of rage, though the murder is witnessed by Trinity, Nine, and Hakumen. The heroes fight valiantly against Terumi, but the Sage and Alchemist are killed. Hakumen finishes off Terumi, who is sent to the Underworld, seemingly never to return. Yuuki Terumi will forever be remembered as a traitor. The verses of the Dark Days commemorate both the struggle of man/faunus, as well as The Six Heroes' triumph.

985 AD

Founding of the New Kingdoms of Mantle, Vale, Mistral and Vacuo.

The remaining heroes seek out new lives. The Silver-Eyed Warriors fade from Remnant's memory. The Axiom sends a messenger to the gods, who instructs them to manifest through the Arcana, so that they may usher in a Mortal Era. They oblige, becoming servants to their own creation: humanity. Some do this happily and eagerly, but many gods are forced unto the Arcana against their will.

 **Recent Documented Era**

987 AD

After an incident, Mantle imposes laws against self-expression believing that if people controlled their emotions, the Grimm would be less of a threat. Their ally, Mistral, quickly follows but still allows the center of the kingdom to maintain its cultural identity. Osiris is reborn, and offers to preserve Hakumen so that he may be called upon in a time of need. Hakumen accepts, and begins a long slumber underground. Most assume him to be dead.

990 AD

Due to the pristine conditions of the islands and peninsulas of the east coast of Sanus, Mistral and Vale try to settle the location at the same time. Despite the best efforts of the King of Vale, the two groups of people clash at what would be the first battle of the Great War.

990 - 1000 AD

The Great War is waged between Vale and Vacuo, and Mantle and Mistral. The war lasts for 10 years.

1000 - 1008 AD

An end to the Great War is negotiated on Vytal. The Huntsman Academies, Cross Continental Transmit System, color naming tradition, and the Vytal Festival are all created in its aftermath, slavery is abolished and Faunus are given the continent of Menagerie in addition to equal rights as citizens. The Huntsman Academies are established shortly after.

1009 AD

Founding of the Schnee Dust Company by Nicholas Schnee. The link between Terumi and Kazuma leads to Kazuma freeing Terumi and Izanami from the Underworld. Kazuma is changed, and becomes Terumi's vessel, Hazama. With no gods to return them to their prison, Remnant will forever be changed.

1016 AD

The Kingdom of Mantle ceases to exist and is replaced with the Imperium of Atlas, under the rule of its new Imperator. Due to Terumi's influence, Hazama no longer ages, but slowly becomes as sadistic as his host.

1018 AD

The Faunus Rights Revolution is fought. The battle of Fort Castle occurs 3 years into the war, signalling a major turning point.

1021 AD

At least 3 years after the start of the conflict, the Faunus Rights Revolution concludes with victory for the Faunus. The White Fang is created in its aftermath as a symbol of peace and unity between Humans and Faunus, later to become a peaceful protest organization in the wake of continued discrimination.

1025 AD

It is discovered that Dust does not function off-planet. The Imperator encourages military pursuits.

1026 AD

Jacques Schnee inherits the Schnee Dust Company. Under his leadership, the SDC begins to participate in morally questionable business and labor practices. Relius Clover is Administratively Separated from the Atlas Military, directed to work under the Imperator.

1031 AD

Mountain Glenn, an expansion to the southeast of Vale, is founded. This is also the first time that Persona users are documented.

1036 AD

Mountain Glenn succumbs to the Grimm after a protracted siege. The Imperator is rumored to be immortal.

1037 AD

Ragna the Bloodedge is born an orphan. Salem manifests in a physical form once again.

1038 AD

Hyde Kido and Yu Narukami are born. The Great Seal resonates in response to Hyde's birth.

1038 AD (late)

The One-Eyed Lotus, legendary as he has become, is contacted by the vampire, Rachel Alucard.

1039 AD

Oniyuri is founded by wealthy elites that were fed up with how Mistral ran things. The settlement was attacked by a single Grimm before it was finished.

1040 AD

Ruby Rose is born a Silver-Eyed Warrior.

1046 AD

Summer Rose doesn't return home from a mission and is presumed dead. Yang learns Summer is not her biological mother.

1047 AD

The village of Kuroyuri is attacked by the Nuckelavee, which destroys the town and kills nearly everyone.

1050 AD

Jin attempts to kill his sister, Saya. Both are later adopted.

1050 AD (late)

The White Fang changes leadership from Ghira Belladonna to Sienna Khan and its methods change from non-violence to more violent and aggressive behavior.

1053 AD

The freelancers known as "Sector Seven" gain significant traction in Vacuo. Ragna trains under Jubei, but blacks out after a strange accident. Ruby attends Signal. Yu Narukami contracts with Izanagi, who is glad to serve a human such as him. Hyde awakens to the Indulgence of Insulation. The Great Seal resonates once more.

1054 AD

Cinder Fall makes contact with Adam Taurus. Cinder and her followers ambush one of the Maidens. Cinder steals a portion of Amber's power, but is interrupted by Qrow Branwen.

1055 AD

Team HRRN is formed.


	11. Play Me for a Fool - Tohru Adachi

"Wow, I still can't believe we're working together, Naoto!"

PO Chie Satonaka, a recent graduate of the Vale Police Academy, beamed with excitement as she rode in a large, black patrol van with Detective Naoto Shirogane, along with Field Captain Kagura Mutsuki and PO Tohru Adachi. The lattermost of the patrol normally worked dispatch or with the Coroner, so It'd been quite some time since he'd worn the full uniform. _I was getting used to the suit and tie, too… Well, at least there might be a chance of something interesting happening…_

The Detective happily chatted with her old high school friend. "It's fortunate that we get to work together, again! I can proceed with my investigation with the utmost confidence knowing that I have someone like you watching my back! This is getting me thinking back to when we'd all meet up at Junes..."

Kagura let out a light sigh as he drove through an intersection. "I guess I'm excluded from this conversation…" He'd made numerous attempts to interject his thoughts during the drive, but they'd gotten barely any reception at all.

Adachi internally mocked his superior's disappointment. _Nobody gives a damn, Mutsuki. If these shitty brats wanna go around playing "Detective", then that's their deal, not yours. Adults like us are expected to just go about our mediocre lives, waiting for the sweet embrace of death. Well, maybe not_ you. _Guy's like you have that little golden ticket that most people would gladly kill for…_

"Alright Detective, this is the address you gave me." Kagura stopped in front of a small complex of red apartments. "A small family of three, all faunus, went missing from their home just under a week ago…"

As they all stepped out of the van, Naoto was approached by the landlord, a short old woman in a dark business suit. "Are you the detective those cops sent? You're awfully young for to be working in the criminal justice field."

Smiling, Detective Shirogane responded confidently. "I can guarantee you, my age is by no means a reflection of my prior experience. Now then, may we take a look at their room, ma'am?"

As the others began to head upstairs, Adachi felt a familiar buzzing coming from his scroll. He quickly glanced at it, only to see a quick message typed by an unknown sender, which read "DOWN THE ALLEY BEHIND THE COFFEE SHOP". _Not a great time to be messaging me, Cinder. Well, at least there's an easy excuse to be made…_

"Hey Captain, should I grab us some coffee from the shop down the road?" Adachi put on a fake smile, as he always did when speaking to his superiors. "We have no idea how long this investigation could go on for, and if the Detective's reputation holds any weight, she won't skip so much as an inch of their apartment."

From Kagura's perspective, Adachi may have the tendency to act lazy, but he could certainly put in good work when he'd put his mind to it. He also had some of the best Marksmanship scores he'd ever seen. Unfortunately, he lacked the social and leadership skills necessary for advancement. "I suppose a little caffeine wouldn't hurt, just try and make it quick. Detective Shirogane might need our help."

"You won't even notice I'm gone, Field Captain!" Quickly walking off down the road, the cop dropped his false smile, a sour expression finding its way onto his face. _Just what the hell does that chick want with me anyhow?_

As he walked down the narrow alley, Adachi noticed the woman ahead, dressed casually with a red t-shirt and black skirt, far from her typical attire during their meetings. The usually smug grin from her was all it took to irritate the mole. "I'm working right now, Cinder, so this better be important. Contrary to what you might believe, I'm not some kinda puppet, awaiting your instruction."

"You're all that you ever needed to be, _Officer."_ She said, teasing him along the way. "I'm quite happy to be able to work with someone such as yourself. You're both cunning and deceptively powerful… which is why it pains me to do this."

A sudden, intense pressure appeared behind Adachi, and he could feel it inching closer. As he spun around to see the source, he was instantly slammed on to the ground. After a moment of brief shock, he'd realized that his Aura was almost completely depleted, and a sharp pain shot through his spine.

"Shit, what the hell was that?!" Looking upward, he saw the large, unmistakable frame of The Mad Dog of Vacuo. "Azrael, are you trying to kill me?!"

"Don't flatter yourself, little mole." Azrael looked antsy, as if he had something more important on his mind. "Boring prey like you aren't even worth killing. I'm just making sure you stay in your damn hole during the main event."

Cinder elaborated on what Azrael meant. "In the grand scheme of things, I wouldn't even count this as the first round, but it's still important that a victory is secured. You see, Adachi, I know you wouldn't try and turn on us, despite your reasoning being more out of apathy than loyalty. However, that little 'Ace Detective' of yours is sniffing around where I'd rather her nose not be. While there's a possibility that you could steer her in the wrong direction, I'd rather she have to deal with a more _urgent_ distraction…" She nodded to Azrael, as her most loyal associates, Emerald and Mercury, appeared from behind her. Unsheathing their weapons, they advanced towards Adachi as Cinder continued. "There's no need to worry, though. We won't go as far to _kill_ you… but this will nonetheless be painful-."

"Back away from him!"

At the entrance to the alley, a blue-haired girl in a very long, full-length blue dress stood, wielding a traditional rapier. Beside her was a white-haired boy in a red sweater-vest, with black dress-slacks and two small pile bunker's strapped with leather belts to his black gloves. The female pointed her blade towards Azrael. "Mad Dog! You're acts of violence have not gone unnoticed! We've called the local authorities, and are prepared to ensure that you do not leave this location until you're properly apprehended!"

Emerald whispered into Cinder's ear. "I set up an illusion like you asked, but for some reason, Azrael can still be seen. It's like some part of him just _refuses_ to stay hidden."

Mercury tapped their boss on the shoulder. "I think we ought to just bail and let the big guy do his thing."

Although annoyed by the turn of events, Cinder agreed. "Fine then, let's go! We're proceeding ahead of schedule, so notify Roman and Gordeau to expedite their preparations!"

The three of them left, as Adachi counted his blessings. _Ain't I just the luckiest guy around? Alright Cinder, if that's how you wanna play it, then it's game on!_

No longer interested in the PO or the three who left him, Azrael faced the two teenagers who had challenged him. "Two courses in a single battle? You two are lucky that I've worked up such an appetite! Come on, then! LET'S SEE IF YOU CAN ENTERTAIN ME!"

After seeing the intense energy from their opponent, the boy looked to his companion. "I'm all for a good fight, Ballardiae, but I hope we didn't bite off more than we can chew. He got his nickname for a reason."

The girl remained poised for battle, unflinching in the face of her opponent. "We've been given the opportunity to transfer to Beacon Academy, one of the most prestigious Huntsman school's in existence. At the very least, we should show the community that we are, indeed, protectors! I ask of you, Akihiko Sanada, lend me your aid!"

Smiling, Akihiko put up his fists in a boxer's stance, retracting the pile bunker's into a pre-fire setup. "Well, I can't just say no when you're getting all pumped up like that! Alright Orie, let's show this chump what two Persona user's can _really_ do!"

…..

Inside a large, grey facility, General James Ironwood walked past various rooms filled with private, civilian scientists and engineers. At the end of a long, wide hallway, stood a man dressed in an odd magenta dress outfit with a massive cape. It reminded the Atlesian General of pictures of wealthy merchants from the old Kingdom of Mantle, prior to the new age of The Imperium. Upon his eyes rested a peculiar mask. He'd claimed it was purely decorative in nature, as he'd never worn it during his previous military career.

"Ah, so you've arrived!" The oddly dressed man welcomed the General. "It has been quite some time since last we met face-to-face, James." He extended his hand in greeting.

Shaking the scientists' hand, Ironwood smiled. "I'd say it's been far _too_ long, Colonel- I mean, Doctor Clover."

"There's no need for formalities or recognition of rank, here." Relius Clover led the General inside the room at the end of the hall. "I'm a civilian now, after all. In the service of The Imperator, may I add."

Within the room were what appeared to be two young girls laying on metal tables, though James quickly recognized them as the Anti-Grimm Defense Platforms. A couple of the newer platforms had already been deployed, but these most recent models seemed to boast different weapon features. A white-colored "girl" seemed to be outfitted with multiple chain weapons, and a large axe-like device was seated next to it. The darker android seemed to have wings akin to that of a butterfly along its head, though it was unclear to James as to what the purpose of such wings was.

"As per instructions, each A-GD Platform has been programmed to replicate human thought patterns to allow them to adapt to human society, along with a portable shield generator that produces a mock version of our natural Aura shielding. Although these models aren't quite ready for field testing, I assure you that their undercover capabilities will allow for increased civilian safety both against the Grimm, as well as internal threats. Local crime here in Atlas, as well as overseas for our allies in Vale, should drop considerably once we are able to go public, though it may be many years before we may mass-produce them."

"How fascinating," the General remarked. "My only concern is that the Murakumo Project was similar in design, and I'm certain you know how poorly that ended."

Relius nodded in understanding. "You're concerns are indeed warranted, though I'd implore you to have faith in The Imperators judgement. The failings of the Murakumo Project are a direct result of the Dark Mother's interference. I assume that you've been in contact with Beacon's Headmaster in regards to that matter specifically?"

James answered, though he was clearly bothered by the thought of humanities great enemy. "I don't know she managed to infiltrate our security back then, but if she can do it years ago, why not now?"

"The answer is in private contracting, James. By cutting out the Armed Forces and Intelligence Bureau, this new project can keep all its workers accountable for maintaining secrecy while also avoiding attention from those that would target military assets, including both her as well as White Fang insurgents. It helps that this facility lies underneath a hospital. We've done everything we could to ensure that these secrets remain as such."

Although Ironwood had his doubts about the integrity of a private building holding such important secrets, he chose not to voice them further. _The Imperator's word is law… yet I feel as though there is more to this than meets the eye. Perhaps I could use my spot on the Atlas Council to voice my concerns. Then again, my voice holds little weight against the wealthy "social elite", doesn't it? Even with efforts being put forth into military advancement, it's always people like Jacques who get her approval..._


	12. A Friend in Need? - Polendina Sisters

Two girls walked down a busy sidewalk, attempting to avoid the countless number of daily commuters. It was the lunchtime rush hour, and the young ladies had managed to lose track of their guide through the city.

The orange-haired girl, clad in a feminine overall-dress with neon green highlights, was quite flustered by the hectic nature of the city. "Oh dear, we sure managed to get ourselves lost, Aileen! I certainly hope that we don't get in too much trouble… Do you have any idea where we're currently located?"

Her blonde counterpart wore a long, full body sundress with neon blue highlights. In contrast to the other girl, Aileen remained unshaken by the unfamiliar surroundings. "I believe that this is a border area between Vytal and Central City. This should approximately ten miles from Inaba, and less than two miles from the travel port., Penny."

Penny looked on in awe of the other girl's location awareness. "Wow, how impressive! Would this mean that we're walking above the Vale Metro Tunnels?"

Aileen smiled softly in response. "You catch on so quickly, sister! If I'm not mistaken, learning from one another while travelling is commonly seen as 'bonding' in this kingdom, an act carried out by family and friends alike."

"Is that so?" Penny tilted her head quizzically, though she maintained her jovial demeanor. "If that is the case, then I can't wait to experience even further bonding with you-."

The girl was interrupted as someone ran into her, knocking the orange-haired girl on to the ground. Unphased, she looked up to see a girl in a red-and-black dress dusting herself off. Behind this girl were a group of three boys who had been traveling with her.

Ruby grumbled as she muttered to herself. "There I go again, running into people… Sorry about that, it was my fault!" She smiled awkwardly, hoping that this wouldn't be a repeat of her experience with Weiss.

Yu held his hand out for Penny. "Are you alright? That was quite the collision you had there."

Penny looked at his hand for a moment, then smiled at him. "There is no need for concern! I have received no damage, but I thank you for asking!"

As Narukami wondered whether or not the girl would take his hand or not, Ragna whispered to Hyde. "Is it just me, or is this chick a total fuckin' Space Cadet? I mean, she's just _laying there_."

Trying his best not to chuckle inappropriately, Hyde whispered back. "Dude, she totally is! Oh man, this is hard to watch…" His eyes wandered up to the blonde, who seemed to have been accompanying the weird girl. _This chick is actually kinda cute, though. Is she like a caretaker, or something?_

As people walking by began to stare at the teenager on the ground, Aileen crouched down alongside Penny, motioning towards Narukami who had managed to keep his arm outstretched in spite of how uncomfortable he felt. "This kind young man intends to assist you in returning to your feet, Penny. It would be rude to keep him waiting."

"Oh, I see now!" Grabbing hold of Yu's hand, Penny smiled widely. "I thank you for offering assistance! My name is Penny, what's yours?"

"I'm Yu Narukami," Team HRRN's leader kept a friendly smile on his face as he lifted Penny to her feet, although he'd started to feel somewhat uncomfortable around the odd girl. "These are my friends and teammates, Ruby, Hyde, and Ragna."

"Well salutations, Yu, Ruby, Hyde, and Ragna!" Penny's bizarre and overly-cheery demeanor oozed out as she waved both hands at the team. "It is a joy and an honor to meet you all! Oh, and this is my sister, Aileen!"

Bowing respectfully, the blonde smiled brightly. "Greetings! I hope that we weren't too much of a bother for you."

Ruby answered respectfully. "Well, we couldn't just leave her down there like that! 'A friend in need is a friend, indeed!' That's what my dad always told me!"

Ragna cut in rather bluntly. "We really oughta get going, guys. That restaurant is about to get busy, and there's only so much seating available. I'd like to not have to cook tonight, so can we try and _not_ be late this time?"

The team leader nodded in agreement. "While your cooking is always fantastic, I'd say we all could use a break from eating at school, and I've heard great reviews about this place." He waved to Aileen and Penny, trying to ignore the fact that the latter of the two seemed to be staring off into space. "It was nice meeting you, but we have to get going, now!" The four students turned and walked away, leaving the two sisters behind.

Ragna couldn't help but start to chuckle. "I don't know how you managed to keep a straight face like that, leader! That chick was _beyond_ your average 'special' kid."

Narukami let out an exhausted sigh. "It's not easy being the face of the team. Honestly, I'm not sure how much longer I could've kept my hand outstretched like that…"

Shrugging it all off, Ruby remained positive. "Let's just look at this as the day we met a new friend! Even if she is a bit on the strange side…"

"YOU SAID IT, AGAIN!"

Ruby turned around to see that the voice had come from Penny, who had apparently been following Team HRRN, with Aileen following close behind. "Uh, I'm sorry, what did I say?" Ruby awkwardly scratched the back of her head, and she could hear the boys groaning in the background.

"You said 'friend'! You were referring to _me_ , weren't you?" Penny grabbed Ruby by the hands. "Does this mean that you and I are friends, now?!"

"Uhhh… sure?" As Ruby nervously responded, Hyde and Ragna facepalmed in unison while Yu pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"Well, isn't that fantastic, Penny?" Aileen gave off a warm smile. "You've managed to make your very first friend!"

"Wait, did you just say 'first' friend?" Ruby took a step back in surprise.

"YES! This is positively _sensational!"_ Penny embraced Ruby in an overwhelmingly tight show of affection. "Shall we partake in the painting of one anothers nails? Or perhaps we can have a slumber party, and engage in the act of 'pillow fighting!'"

Ragna sighed. "We're not gonna make it on time, are we?"

….

Pyrrha Nikos, exhausted from the onset of constant challenges from Beacon's student body, returned to her room to try and get some rest. While there was still another day left in their weekend, the tournament champion knew that the next day would be just as busy as the last. As she reached the room labeled "JMPR", she opened the door to see that the school's primary nurse, Litchi Faye-Ling, was checking in on Jaune.

"Ah, Ms. Nikos!" Dressed in a red-on-white full-body dress, the nurse smiled at Pyrrha while handing a vial of red pills to Jaune. "How was your day? Busy as usual, I'd assume?"

"I'm afraid that's been the case for a while, now." Taking a seat on her bed, Pyrrha quickly switched the attention away from herself. "So Jaune, are you ready to get back to your classes? There's only so much that we can do without our leader, you know."

With a smile on his face, Jaune responded with a big "Hell ya! I've been wasting away in Ms. Faye-Ling's office long enough! I'm ready to get back on my feet!"

Giggling in response, Pyrrha found herself surprised by her leader's response. "Did you just say 'Hell ya'? I think that Kanji's mannerisms are starting to rub off on you."

"Heh, I guess you're right about that… my bad." Team JMPR's leader laughed off the embarrassment, as he was happy just getting things back to normal.

Litchi tapped Jaune lightly on the shoulder. "Just don't forget to take one of the prescribed anti-inflammatories whenever you experience a major headache." She then leaned closer to whisper in his ear. "And if you hear that voice again, make sure to let myself or the Headmaster know."

The nurse then waved goodbye as she left the student's room to continue with her own business. After her departure, Pyrrha asked her leader about his symptoms. "Are you still experiencing pain? Is it safe for you to be back on your feet, after all?"

Jaune smiled softly back at her. "It's not any sort of migraine or concussion, but Nurse Faye-Ling seems to think that it's stress-induced. She wants me to take things easy, but I need to get back to my training if I want to be able to pass my classes and move forward as a Huntsman."

"Well… let's just hope that it's only temporary."

Meanwhile, Litchi met up with Ozpin in the middle of one of the school's vast halls. "Any news on the boy?" The Headmaster asked.

"He has yet to awaken," the nurse responded, though her voice carried a bit of a somber tone. "However, his symptoms are the same as the Haven Academy student, Mr. Aragaki. That boy's symptoms started over three years ago… and you know how things had turned out for him."

"This is indeed worrying." Ozpin folded his arms as he considered the consequences. "Even with the suppression drug, it's clear that whoever is making contact with him has no intention of being rejected, and will likely continue to force their way into a contract. He may not be in any immediate danger, but it'd be wise to keep our eyes on him.

…..

"Is this really necessary?" Blake Belladonna had gotten dressed up in a silk white blouse and a black miniskirt, having been asked to come with Yosuke to an all-ages dance club. Her Gambol Shroud had been tucked away in a small backpack, just in case. "I agreed to go on this date with you, but couldn't you have picked somewhere a bit less… crowded? It always gets so stuffy in those clubs…"

Yosuke smiled brightly. His usual work attire had been swapped for a black, button-up dress shirt and slacks. "Trust me, you're gonna _love_ this place! They've got plenty of space for dancing or just hanging out, plus there's tons of cool local DJ's, and even an all-you-can-eat seafood buffet!"

Attempting to hide the smile on her face, Blake admitted that "at least they've got something for me."

The large Metro began to unload passengers as Blake and Yosuke exited on to the boarding platform. Vytal had been well known for successfully integrating a (relatively small) network of underground tunnels for local transport. Although the history of such transportation had been fraught with accidents, things had fortunately turned out for the better in the centralized cities.

As the two teens weaved their way through the crowds of people that were looking to board the Metro, Blake noticed something peculiar out of the corner of her eye. A rat-eared faunus wearing a large trench coat scurried abnormally quickly up the flight of stairs towards the city surface. In his right pocket, Blake noticed something bouncing up and down as he ran.

A white mask.

She stopped moving for a brief second, as if she were stunned by what she saw. Yosuke looked over at her with confusion. "Is there something wrong-." Before he had a chance to finish, Blake darted up the stairs, blowing past the various commuters at breakneck speed.

"Wait, what the hell?! Blake, where are you going?! Wait up!" Flustered by her sudden change in behavior, Yosuke ran up as quickly as his legs would take him, though when he finally could see the darkening evening sky, his date was nowhere in sight. Looking around, he saw lights from shops, vehicles, and the occasional scroll, but in spite of all this, Blake was nowhere in sight.

 _For crying out loud, what did I do?! She just up and bolted on me!_ As he continued to survey the area around him, a line of police vehicles flew down the road, sirens ablaze as civilians did their best to quickly make way for the enforcers. _Great, and now there's a crime or something going on? Gimme a break…_

"Hey Yosuke! Over here!"

The young man's head rose up as he saw a familiar face heading in his direction. "Woah, what are you doing here, partner?"

Yu Narukami, along with his teammates, jogged over to Yosuke. Dressed in a white t-shirt and tan shorts, he gave his old friend a high-five, looking glad to see someone from Yasogami. "We decided to go out for lunch as a team, but now the police have cut off access to the roadway that heads to Beacon's airships. We were hoping things would clear up before it could get too late, but it looks like we might have to _walk_ all the way back at this point. Whatever's got the police riled up must be something serious!"

 _Damn, I guess she really takes that Huntress status seriously. I still can't believe that she'd just bail on me without saying a word._ Shaking off the thought, Yosuke decided to introduce himself. "I'm a friend of Yu's from back at Yasogami High. I actually wanted to become a Huntsman myself, but dear old dad wasn't having any of it."

A dark-haired girl came up to shake his hand. "Nice to meet you, I'm Ruby Rose! Sorry that you couldn't enroll at Beacon, but you're always welcome to come and visit anytime. Or, I guess that'd be any _weekend_ , heh..." As she awkwardly trailed off, a boy with partially bleached hair came forward. "I'm Hyde Kido. A friend of Narukami is a friend of mine, so there's no need for formalities." The boy gave a relieved sigh as he thought to himself. _I'm glad that this guy isn't like the damn Space Cadet. If it weren't for the cops being such a distraction, we'd have never ditched her to begin with. It's too bad that we had to leave the other girl, though..._

Yosuke moved from shaking Ruby's hand to giving Hyde a fist-bump. "Alright! It's nice to meet some friendly faces! The girl I came here with totally ditched me, so having company is definitely better than hanging around here all by myself."

Ruby nudged the tallest member of their team. "Ragna, quit staring off into space and introduce yourself!"

Ragna kept looking off into the distance, but spoke up. "Did that girl you mentioned happen to be wearing a black bow on her head?"

Surprised, Yosuke responded with a touch of anxiety in his voice. "Ya, she does wear a bow like that! Did you see her?!"

Pointing toward an alleyway behind the stairs to the boarding station, Ragna continued. "She was chasing some small faunus down that alley." He smirked at Yosuke. "Looks like you've got one crazy girlfriend there, buddy!"

Yosuke grumbled as he ran towards the alley. "I have no idea what she's doing, but if I don't go after her, I'll regret it. See ya, partner!"

"Wait, we'll come with you!" Yu followed his old partner. "It's dangerous to be running down those back alleys by yourself!" He motioned to his teammates, who followed as well. As she ran alongside her team members, Ruby thought of what Ragna mentioned about the girl. _There's no way that he was talking about Blake… was he?_

…..

The young, white-haired man kept his composure as he weaved between multiple swings from Azrael's massive fists. Although Orie had taken multiple stabs at him, she couldn't seem to hit any vital points without her blade bouncing clear off her target's massive Aura projection. She had no choice but to chip away at her opponent while his attention was elsewhere.

"Alright, let's give him a dual strike, Caesar!" Akihiko's Persona emerged behind Azrael, slamming it's sword downward. Spinning around, Azrael stopped the blade with his bare hand. "Was that supposed to hit me?" Azrael seemed unamused by the tactic. "Why don't you try using your fists like a _real_ challenger?!"

In response, Akihiko dashed forward. "Fine then, have a taste of this! Kill Rush!" He used the extra force from his pile bunker's to land a flurry of strong jabs into his opponents rib cage, while dodging a retaliatory kick. "You swing so slowly, those attacks of yours will never connect, Mad Dog!" He leapt up into the air, then called upon Caesar again. "Maziodyne!" The Persona sent out a myriad of lightning bolts down towards Azrael, though the large man seemed unphased as he braced for the hits without even bothering to dodge.

Suddenly, a red field of energy began to appear around Azrael's body, as an abnormally large smile formed on his face. "Growler Field!" The bolts dissipated as they came into contact with their targets Aura, rendering the attack null against the opponent. As the field disappeared, Mad Dog let out a sigh. "I was starting to get excited for a moment there, but ya just had to ruin it by backing off and firing off that electric crap… C'mon, kid! Come at me for real, or get out of my way!"

Orie called out to Akihiko. "He's been limiting his power! We just need to buy time, so don't try and push him to remove his seals-!"

"LEOPARD LAUNCHER!"

Akihiko braced himself as a powerful blow from the Mad Dog sent him flying into the side of a building. _Crap, I dropped my guard!_ The impact caused him to lose his breath for a few seconds, but he managed to remain conscious as he concentrated on regenerating his Aura. His vision faded in and out as his body pulsed from the shock of the impact. "Sorry Ballardiae, looks like I'm out of the ring for a minute…" _I hope you didn't see_ that _one, Shinji..._

Keeping up her guard, Orie faced her opponent as he scoffed at her. "Just what have those damn school's been teaching you, anyhow? It's no wonder that worthy adversaries are so hard to come by!"

Unflinching, the duelist kept her blade aimed at her opponent. "We're trained first and foremost to purge the Grimm and protect the people of Remnant! Dealing with barbaric battle-junkies is hardly the duty of a Huntress, but I will ensure that ALL threats to the law and order of this world are dealt with as necessary! It is my pursuit of justice that gives me purpose!"

"NONSENSE!" Azrael was clearly disgusted by the girl's response. "Justice has no purpose in this world! We are all fated to a life of BATTLE from the first breath we take to our very last! It is the nature of this world; it is _our_ nature! That is why we constantly seek out more powerful opponents to satisfy our innate cravings! Without battle, our lives are MEANINGLESS! So come at me, 'Huntress', and let me give you meaning!"

"Come to me, Thanatos! Let us strike as one!" Orie summoned forth her Persona, a tall, metallic being with holes where its eye should have been, and a katana sheathed by it side. Above its shoulders were a row of small floating coffins, all linked together by a line of chains.

Orie lunged forward as the Persona flew overhead. Azrael blocked a series of quick strikes from the girl, then quickly dashed backward as Thanatos struck downwards, but was cut off-guard as it continued to pursue him, launching forward with a fast Iaido-style slash with its blade. Though he'd taken a hit, the Mad Dog spun back around from the impact, landing a wide roundhouse kick into the Persona's jaw, sending it backwards into its user. Orie used a dismissal command before it could hit her.

"Gustav!" The large, blue-haired warrior threw his whole body forward to strike at his opponent. Orie quickly used a defensive skill in an attempt to defend herself. "Thanatos, Tetrakarn!" A protective bubble surrounded the student, which would reflect damage back at the attacker.

At least, that's what it _should_ have done.

The barrier shattered, and Orie felt the entirety of her Aura immediately vanish as she was sent flying backwards like her partner before her. She braced herself for a similar impact, but found herself caught but something that stopped her from landing against concrete. As her eyes refocused, she found herself in the arms of a police officer. The uniformed man gave a charismatic smile. "Now what's a charming young lady like yourself doing in such a dangerous part of town?" The man was accompanied by two young women as well.

The Huntress blushed in response to being held by the man. "W-w-well, you see, that man over there-."

"KAGURA MUTSUKI!"

Azrael advanced slowly towards them as the sickeningly wide smile on his face somehow grew wider still. "It's been a long time, Black Knight! You managed to leave me unconscious last time… but you left me so _unsatisfied_! I've been STARVING since you left Vacuo, but now I'm ready to FEAST!

The Field Captain set Orie down on the sidewalk, as Chie came to check on the student. He picked up a massive black blade that he had set aside when catching the young lady, and took up a battle-ready stance as he faced Azrael. "Sorry Mad Dog, but I make it a point to satisfy women exclusively… But if you need someone to put you in the ground again, I'll gladly make that happen."

 **A/N**

 **Hey Fella's! It's gonna be a fairly brief Note this time.**

 **I originally labeled Erebus as Nyx's son, but this was incorrect. I changed it on the Timeline page to show that they are siblings (and lovers. That's Greek mythology, for ya). Apologies for the error.**

 **While Orie is 17 and a first-year (Freshman) transfer student from Haven Academy, Akihiko is 20, and a fourth-year (Senior) from the same school. Mitsuru did not attend a Huntsman Academy due to her father's passing, and instead took up private studies when not busy managing the Kirijo Group.**

 **I'm _considering_ potentially including Strega and the Licht Kries, though they'd both have to be modified to work within this fanfiction.**

 **Alrighty, that's it for now. Thank you for following Against Despair, and I'll see ya'll in the next chapter!**


	13. First Contact - Qrow Branwen

-Two Years Prior-

It had been a long four day's for Qrow Branwen. He'd been working in a small town in Mistral as a special request from Haven's Headmaster, Leonardo Lionheart. Given the lack of protest (or any response at all) from Beacon, Qrow found himself subject to the responsibility of giving a team of second-year students first-hand hunting experience for a full week's duration as part of their yearly final. This would mean being out in the mountains teaching and watching over four teenager's. _To top it all off, I'm fresh out of booze._ The Huntsman sighed as he stashed his empty flask. The campsite that they'd made had weathered through the onslaught of heavy rain and wind, but the time had come for them to get back to the hunt, even if the darkened clouds showed no signs of letting up. _Raven's been known to operate out here, too. The last thing I need is these kids getting targeted by those damn low lifes, or screwed over by my Semblance for that matter. It's best that we get moving._

Team KAOS was anything but chaotic. They were led by a calm young man known as Kei Asuma, often labeled by his fellow students as "Bloodstained Chaos", much to his annoyance. His ability to summon a Grimm-like creature to his aid was a unique one, usually only seen as a hereditary trait within certain established families. He had named this creature "Aji D'haka", after a particularly powerful Grimm that had walked the surface of Remnant during the early days of The Dark War. In his first year at Haven, "Chaos" had taken out an entire hunting party of Beowolves alone during the initiation ceremony, owing his success to "careful planning and execution". Kei knew that he was capable of making terrible mistakes if he were unprepared, so he made sure that every critical decision would be made _proactively_ , never reactively.

Akihiko Sanada was one of two front-line fighters in the group; a traditional boxer with a drive for self-improvement and a love for copious amounts of protein. His Persona, Polydeuces, assisted him in delivering powerful, lightning-enhanced blows to his opponents. This, as well as his positive outlook and encouragement, led Kei to choose the fist fighter as the "Poster Boy" of the team, letting Akihiko handle most conversations and introductions with teachers and other classmates. His nickname, "Two-Fisted Protein Junkie", followed him throughout his first year, though it did little to bother the aspiring Huntsman-in-training.

The third members went solely by his nickname: Ogre. This young man was, to Kei's frustration, a bit of a playboy. The scholarly leader of Team KAOS had noticed that the number of girls that Ogre had scroll numbers of exceeded the amount of people that he himself even knew. Despite this, the young man was quite respectful to the guys on his team, and was more than willing to take hits for teammates during sparring sessions with other Huntsman trainee's. Ogre was also an absolute powerhouse in combat, able to surround his fists with a powerful miasma that could quickly eat away at both flesh and Aura shielding, cementing himself as one of Haven's most dangerous (and charming) students, and earning him the title "Devil's King".

Unlike the other boys, Shinjiro Aragaki was a bit more quiet and reclusive, though his outward appearance betrayed some aspects of his personality. A close friend of Akihiko since they were children, Shinjiro used a Persona called Castor, which would deliver slow-yet-devastating power blows against anyone unlucky enough to be on the receiving end. When necessary, Shinji would carry a large axe. The weapon was equipped with a firing mechanism that could launch the blades forward while connected to a chain inside, then retract to pull the blades back into place. Despite his heavy focus on power-blows, he was often relegated to being the team's chef, given his culinary skills. He also struggled with intermittent migraines, for which he was prescribed a special medication.

"Alright kid's, finish packing your bags so we can a move on, already." Qrow massaged his shoulders, sore from multiple nights of sleeping on the rocky ground. "There should be a town out west from here, maybe sixteen or seventeen kilometers. If we're quick about it, you boys can have yourselves a warm final night before we call for pick-up." _Hopefully, I can have myself a drink, while I'm at it…_

Throwing his luggage over his shoulder, Akihiko kept up his positive demeanor. "That makes this the home stretch! One final push, and Team KAOS climbs to the next plateau: Third Year!"

"Hah, you say that like it's a big deal!" Ogre chuckled as he finished putting away the tent. "The _real_ fun starts when summer break hits!"

Stowing some pots and pans, Shinjiro sighed. "Just don't waste my time with another 'Operation Babe Hunt'. That shit was humiliating, Ogre."

"C'mon, you were a _hit_ with the ladies!" Ogre laughed as he pat Shinjiro on the shoulder. "Besides, you're the only one here I can trust as my wingman! You're pal Aki always steals my thunder, and Chaos is…" he struggled to find the right words. "...more of the cool loner type."

"I'm not a 'loner', I just don't find it necessary to hit on every single girl with a pulse." Kei approached his teammates, while placing a large book in one of his travel bags. "Do you mind carrying this for me, Akihiko?"

Ogre frowned. "Hey leader, when are you going to start carrying your own weight? I know you're not as muscle-bound as The Protein Junkie, but this is supposed to be a team effort, y'know?"

"I suppose you're right…" Chaos was about to take back his bag back, before having it practically ripped from his hands.

"Hah! I welcome the challenge!" Akihiko took the additional weight eagerly. "Besides, my muscles won't grow any further if I don't push them past their limits! If anyone else wants to take a load off, I'll gladly take on the extra weight!"

Qrow yelled over at the boys, his own travel essentials in hand. "I don't give a damn who carries what, just get a move on already!"

As they finished packing, Shinjiro opened up a plastic, orange container that he'd used to hold his medication. Inside, he saw his last pill, sitting comfortably at the bottom. He reached in to grab it, but was suddenly knocked down to the ground by something massive. Ignoring the pain from the heavy strike, Shinjiro looked upwards to see a lone beowolf clawing at his Aura. Having noticed the Grimm too late, Qrow dropped his bags and leapt toward the beast, swinging his Harbinger at angle, making sure not to strike at the pinned student. Fortunately, the rogue beowolf was cleaved in two, leaving the blindsided boy a chance to return to his feet.

As Qrow helped him back up, Shinjiro ignored the concerns of his teammates as he frantically looked around for the pill container. After a few seconds, he spotted the orange vial about ten yards away. _Thank the Gods,_ he thought as he ran over to it.

However, as he checked the container, he saw that the pill was nowhere to be found.

Akihiko ran up to his childhood friend, noticing the missing medication. "Damn, the nurse mentioned that those were important!"

Qrow raised an eyebrow. "If it's a medical emergency, I can call in the shuttle early. You'll still pass your final, so there's no shame if you-."

"No thanks, Mr. Branwen." Shinjiro picked his bags back up. "I'm a member of Team KAOS, I'm not going to let some damn meds keep me from finishing this test properly."

Though truthfully, he wasn't so sure. He'd been consistent with taking the prescription up until that moment.

"Shinji, you don't have to keep going if the pain gets too rough, alright?" Akihiko gave a light smile to his best friend.

"Don't worry Aki," Shinjiro reassured his friend in response. "I'll be just fine, I promise."

…

 _Shinji…_

 _Shinji!..._

 _SHINJI, NO!_

Waking up with a jolt, Gordeau looked around in a brief panic. The moment ended quickly, as he realized that the White Fang transport he'd boarded had just landed by the docks adjacent to Central Vale. _With Cinder contacting us out of the blue like that, I hardly got any sleep. Guess I must have passed out on this airship…_

The Grim Reaper unfastened himself from his seat as the shuttle doors opened, and he stretched his arms a bit as he slowly made his way outside. Roman Torchwick met the mercenary just outside the ship. The wanted criminal wore a frustrated frown on his face.

"Could you at least _pretend_ to be interested in your bloody job, Greed?!" He motioned to his partner, Neo, who closed the ship door behind Gordeau. "It's going to be a long night, and it aggravates me when you're barely paying attention."

"Roman, if I wanted to get paid to listen to people complain all night, I'd still be bartender." The Harvester did his best to ignore Neo's angry gaze from the background. "Regardless, I got a call from Emerald on the way here. It sounds like Cinder's having a rough time keeping everything going according to her plan. Hazama isn't responding, either, which is concerning."

Though still a bit irritated, Roman nodded in agreement. "To top it all off, our hunk of dumb muscle ended up engaging with the cops too early, leaving Adachi unattended. I TOLD her that taking on a dirty cop would bite us in the ass, but she never listens to a damn word I say!"

Gordeau jokingly poked fun at Torchwick. "Jeez, now _why on Remnant_ wouldn't someone want to listen to you, I wonder?" In response to Torchwick's pissed expression, Gordeau laughed. "Hey, I'm just giving you a hard time! Seriously, a big-time criminal like you should learn to lighten up a little!"

"Just go stand guard, Greed. Of all the people that Cinder has working with us, you're the only one worth trusting given your consistent results. There's a lot on the line here, and neither one of us can afford to screw this up." Roman shook his head as he walked away toward the White Fang members who were loading large freight containers of Dust and weapons onto a cargo airship. Neo followed Gordeau instead, apparently having been assigned to assist him in dealing with any stray officers.

"So, uh… You like working for Roman?" Gord's attempt at making conversation fell flat, as the sharply-dressed woman simply stuck her tongue out at him in response.

 _Well, that certainly could've gone better._ The Grim Reaper braced himself for what he expected to be a long and awkward night of guard duty. Fortunately for him, things were about to get much more interesting than he'd anticipated.

…..

Atop one of the rooftops, Blake surveyed the actions of the White Fang members in the area, taking note of the man in charge, and the two individuals who had taken up a guard position. _Why would Sienna allow the White Fang to work with these criminals? Just what is going on, here?_

Suddenly, a puff of green smoke filled the air behind her. Taking Gambol Shroud out of her bag, she aimed toward it, but as the smoke cleared, she saw her would-be date standing before her instead. "What the hell are you doing, Blake?!" Yosuke had his hands on his hips, clearly frustrated with her. "First off, quit pointing that gun at me! My Aura isn't _nearly_ strong enough to take a bullet to the chest, y'know!"

"Yosuke, how'd you appear there so quickly? I didn't hear any climbing or footsteps…" Blake lowered her weapon. "You're not a _ninja_ , or something like that, are you?"

Annoyed, Yosuke grumbled. "What?! No, I'm not a ninja, it's just one of Persona's powers. I don't get why people always think that." Shaking his head, the Junes Manager got back on track. "Anyways, can you please explain to me why the hell you're on top of a roof near the docks? It's way too sketchy to be running around Central Vale alone, especially at night time. Not to mention that you ditched me without any sort of heads up! If you didn't want to go out that badly, you should've just said so..."

"I'm sorry Yosuke, it's just that I'm-." _Wait, now's too early to tell him about my past. I guess I'll have to settle for half of the truth, then._ "I'm a Huntress, now. I can't just ignore two wanted criminals aiding the White Fang in stealing precious cargo."

"Wait, two wanted criminals? White Fang?" Yosuke's expression changed to a look of curiosity, as he joined Blake in surveying the smuggling operation. "No way, that guy in the back looks like Roman Torchwick! And the guy next to that fancy-looking chick, I feel like I've read about a guy dressed like that before…"

Blake nodded as she explained. "Though I've never seen a photo of him, that man meets the description of a certain mercenary from Vacuo: Gordeau the Harvester."

"Are you serious! The _GRIM REAPER_ is here?!" Yosuke began to sweat nervously. "Blake, I'm all for doing the right thing, but if what I've read on the ScrollNet is true, that guy is serious business. You might have some experience as a Huntress, but we're both still teenagers! Can't we just call the police and call it a night?"

"The police are responding to some other emergency situation right now." Blake closed her eyes as she thought to the likely reason. _It may very well be an intentional distraction._

As Blake looked over the scene from above, Gordeau sighed as he pretended not to be aware of their presence. "Hey Neo, I'm usually not the type to pass up a good fight, but if there's a scout or two up there, you can best bet that there are more of 'em snooping around nearby. I'm technically not supposed to leave this spot, so…" He gave the enigmatic young woman a nod as if to indicate what he intended. Understanding fully, Neo casually walked behind a pillar alongside the waterfront, and disappeared from sight.

Shortly after his partners departure, a teenager in red and black clothes ran out from one of the alleyways, seemingly having been looking for someone, as he quickly looked around from one direction to another. Following close behind was a girl with a similar color scheme, brandishing an oddly-shaped firearm in her hands.

"Woah there, kiddo's. You two lost or something?" Gord stayed in place as he nonchalantly spoked to the young man. Having noticed the sword slung behind his waist, the Grim Reaper couldn't help but have a smile on his face.

"It's nothing you need to worry about-," Ragna stopped in his tracks as he looked over the storage docks, which had been riddled with small airships and strange figures in white masks. _Those are White Fang masks…_ "Just what the hell is going on here?!"

Ruby noticed the masked individuals as well, but could only recognize them based off of what little she'd seen on the Vale News Network. "Those guys… don't tell me they're... Faunus extremists?" As she continued to look over the faunus, a certain orange-haired man caught her attention. "Wait a minute, that's Roman Torchwick! That's the guy I was chasing after before I came to Beacon!"

Hearing the Huntress yell toward him, Roman clenched his fist as he recognised the hooded girl. "Well, what do we have here? Little Red, back again to crash another party?! For the God's sake, deal with them, Greed! As for the rest of you, I want that Dust loaded and engines running, and I bloody well want it done NOW!"

"Well then, I guess I'll get to have myself a little bit of fun after all!" As Gordeau took his left hand out of his jacket pocket, a massive purple scythe materialized before them. The mercenary rested the weapon on his shoulder and addressed the two before him. "I normally make it a point not to hurt kids, but the guy in charge isn't a fan of dealing with the local authorities, so I can't risk letting you two just walk away… at least not until our business is taken care of."

 _So these guys were hired by the White Fang…_ Ragna gripped his Blood Scythe as he readied his Aura. _Master had mentioned them before, but I'd never expected them to work with humans._ "Fine then, asshole! I might just be a student, but that won't stop me from putting you in the damn pavement!" Ragna pulled out his weapon as it transformed into its scythe form.

"I'm not sure what's going on, but I won't sit aside and watch my friend fight alone!" Ruby transformed Crescent Rose to match the scythe's of her teammate and the opponent. "As a student of Beacon Academy, I'll stand my ground!"

As Blake and Yosuke witnessed this unfold, the latter of the two facepalmed. "Are those two crazy?! They have no idea who they're fighting!"

"I'm sure they can hold their own." Blake readied her weapon as she looked to Yosuke. "I'm not asking you to fight with us, but I need your help to get in position near where the man with the gaudy attire is." She pointed toward Roman as she asked this favor of her coworker and would-be date. "I'll make it up to you, but without your power I'll be spotted before I can get close enough."

After a moment of hesitation, Yosuke gave in. "Fine, I'll do it. My kunai skills were starting to get rusty anyhow." The young man smiled as he wrapped his arm around Blake's waist. "But I better see you on the dance floor next time! Let's do this, Jiraiya!"

Yosuke's Persona appeared above them, and before Blake could react, the two of them disappeared in a puff of green smoke.

…..

Having fell behind the other two members of Team HRRN, Yu and Hyde had gotten lost in the maze of narrow alleyways, trying to find their bearings. "Damn, I knew that Ruby could outpace us with her Semblance, but I had no idea that Ragna could haul ass like that!" Hyde looked around as he tried to figure out which turn to take. "I think this way heads towards the shipping yard near the waterfront, leader."

Yu gripped the sheath of his blade. _Getting separated so easily… I'd thought that I had a solid hold on Ragna's headstrong nature, but he's nothing like the Investigation Team members. Even Kanji was easily manageable by comparison. To make matters worse, Ruby sticks by his side like glue… Perhaps I've still got a ways to go as leader, after all._ "It seems that we have no option but to head that way, for now. Hopefully, the others will be close by."

However, as they neared the exit, a young woman in a unique, multi colored dress suit came around the corner, blocking their progress.

"Excuse me, but we need to pass through here, miss." Narukami approached the girl, but was stopped in his tracks as she silently pointed her umbrella toward him. At the tip of the umbrella was a fine, thin blade. She revealed a mischievous smile as she slowly advanced toward the teenagers.

Yu drew his blade as Hyde called upon Insulator. "It looks like we've got our work cut out for us tonight, Narukami!"

 **A/N**

 **Hey Fella's. Sorry that this chapter took so damn long. Honestly, it's my fault for procrastinating so much. Anyways, just a couple things I wanted to add:**

 **Polydeuces became Caesar, similar to how it did in P3. Akihiko and Orie met each other somewhere between that two year gap of time.**

 **Chaos will not be a member of any of the "villain" organizations, unlike his UNI(st) counterpart.**

 **Next chapter will be nothing but fight scenes. I originally intended to have a fight in this chapter, but I ran into a few snags on my first couple drafts, so I'm just going to save them for next time. Sorry if I blue-balled anyone, haha!**

 **That's all for now, folks. As always, thank you for following (and being patient with) Against Despair. I'll hope to see ya'll again in the next chapter!**


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